Is There a Future For Us?
by EmmaShalforever
Summary: Snow and Emma have been brought back to Storybrooke, but not without consequences. Along the way 'the Evil Queen' and 'the Savior' might have to reconsider the nature of their relations. Post 2x09. SwanQueen.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Is There a Future For Us?

Pairing: Emma Swan and Regina Mills

Rating: T (for some swearing)

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and I'm making no profit.

Summary: Snow and Emma have been brought back to Storybrooke, but not without consequences. Along the way 'the Evil Queen' and 'the Savior' might have to reconsider the nature of their relations. Post 2x09.

AN: For those who have been reading my first fic 'A Christmas Redemption' this is thought to be a prequel to that story. There's no need to have read that one first, but I'm hoping this story will give a deeper view of that story.

* * *

The first thing Emma Swan becomes aware of when she's brought to consciousness is that she has to pee. And that her head feels heavy and is throbbing.

_Ugh, I hate hangovers._

She lies still for a moment before forcing one eye open to take in her surroundings.

_Comfortable bed, check. Drapes drawn so the room is still blessedly dark, check. Wait a moment, these furniture's aren't mine and the room is too big._

She sits up abruptly in bed, groaning and grabbing her head as her world spins for a moment and the throbbing becomes near unbearable. When it subsides a little, she carefully looks around trying to get a hint as to where she is. There's soft light coming from a door slightly ajar opposite the bed and she scrambles out from the duvets. She really, really has to pee.

She squints in the light when she opens the door fully, but let's out a sigh of relief when it is indeed a bathroom. She quickly sits down to empty her pressing bladder and looks curiously around to get any indication of where she is.

She doesn't like the regal and expensive look she sees. It makes a nagging dread start somewhere in the back of her mind that is not related to her current hangover.

_At least I still have my clothes on._

She deliberately ignores looking at herself in the mirror as she washes her hands, hoping that she can just do a quick escape from wherever she is.

She pauses when she opens the bedroom door and enters a hallway that feels faintly familiar to her. Carefully she starts tiptoeing forwards listening for any sounds and looking at the doors she passes. And then she stops abruptly when she notices a sign on one door.

_Henry. Oh shit._

No wonder the place feels familiar and looks so perfect. She's in Regina Mill's mansion.

_Oh Crap, what the hell happened last night?_

With renewed urgency, she continues as silently as she can manage to the stairs, peeking down apprehensively. But when she sees or hears nothing, she continues quickly. She sighs in relief when she sees her boots by the door and bends over to pick them up when a throat clears and she freezes.

Emma is sure she looks comical in her bent state, arm outstretched toward her shoe as she turns her head to look with fear at the brunette standing in the foyer not far from her with her eyebrows raised and a cup of something in her hand.

"Going somewhere Miss Swan?"

"Oh, I-Of course not," she replies meekly as she straightens and turns to face the woman fully. "Morning," she adds quickly as she tries to smile.

"Is it? I had the impression eleven thirty is a little past morning." Regina replies gleefully as she takes two quick steps toward the blonde and presents her with the cup in her hand. "Anyway, I figured you'd need this," she continues with a smile that's all white teeth, reminding Emma of when she was given the sheriff's badge and giving her the feeling of walking into a lion's den unarmed.

Her fingers close automatically around the proffered cup and had she not been feeling like crap in her current morning after state, she would have paused at how quickly the former mayor retreats when their fingers brush. Instead she looks down in surprise as chocolate fills her nostrils. She sips carefully and lets out a groan of pleasure at the rich taste. She has no idea why Regina would bother making her homemade cocoa and not just give her a cup of coffee, but she's not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth when presented to her.

"Thank you," she says as she takes another sip and looks at the other woman currently regarding her curiously.

"Why don't you join me in the kitchen?" the brunette offers after a moment and Emma is pretty sure there's an unspoken 'you better' in there somewhere.

So it's not with a little sense of trepidation that she follows the woman, taking the indicated seat and sipping her hot chocolate as she tries to imagine what's gonna happen next.

"Do you want anything to eat Miss Swan? How is the head?"

"Uh-" the blonde replies stupidly, feeling like it's a trick question and she is walking into an ambush.

"As eloquent as ever. Quite different than last night when you wouldn't keep your mouth shut."

_Here we go._

"You know what Regina? I have a killer headache and I feel like shit so can you just get to the point so I can go and stick my head in the ground?"

For a moment, the brunette looks taken aback and then seems to contemplate how to move forwards. Clearly it's not as much fun to goad the sheriff when she's not receptive to the insults.

"Always so hostile Miss Swan," Regina replies with a sigh, ever the picture of pretend innocence.

"No, just not in the mood for your games and insults," she snaps back irritably.

"Fine, off you go then," the former mayor replies tersely, taking the still half-full cup away from the other woman. "It's not like you could show some gratitude after you came here drunk of your ass in the middle of the night, complaining about everything in your life and making yourself at home in my house."

Emma felt like tearing at her hair and scream. The former Queen was right of course, she should be grateful, but it was impossible to be so when the other woman was always putting her down.

"Whatever," the blonde replies as she moves to the hallway and starts putting on her boots furiously, Regina following close behind.

"I hope you at least had enough sense to not let Henry see you like that," the brunette says when the other woman opens her door.

Emma turns to look at the woman staring at her with crossed arms and say the only thing she can think of in her anger.

"Fuck you!" And she slams the door harder than she really has to, stomping her feet as she stalks away.

When the door slams, Regina jumps a little, before turning away from the door in disgust, but her face soon distorts in pain instead. She looks quickly down to her hands as a feeling not unlike liquid fire races down her arms and she fists her hands as a green glow seems to pulse around them. She trembles at the pain shooting through her as she tries her best to concentrate on controlling the magic trying to force its way out. It takes a minute – it feels like forever to Regina – before the glow and pain subsides and the brunette lets out a breath she hasn't realized she's been holding, her heart beating fast in her chest.

It doesn't take long before Emma regrets her abrupt departure from the mayoral mansion as she finds herself without her jacket and phone. She thrusts her hand inside her pockets and sighs as she realizes she has no keys or money either. And as if to spite her a wind has started blowing.

_Fucking perfect._

She hurries along the street as fast as her hangover will allow her, and unwillingly her mind goes back to the comfortable bed she was in and how she had ended up there in the first place.

* * *

_She's drunk. She knows she is. That's the only explanation for why it seems perfectly reasonable in her mind to go to Regina Mills at one in the morning._

_She's pounding on the door impatiently as she shifts her weight continuously because it's getting pretty damn cold outside as autumn has clearly come to Storybrooke, unlike where she's been stuck for weeks._

_She's vaguely aware of lights flicking on as she starts yelling the other woman's name impatiently, switching hands as she continues knocking incessantly because the first one is getting sore._

_"Reg-" She is stopped mid shout as the door flies open and a very irritated and slightly disheveled former Queen appears in a black robe._

_"What the hell do you think you're doing Miss Swan?" she asks incredulously, scowling when the blonde gives her a full smile and moves inside, forcing the other woman to take two steps back to avoid contact._

_"Good, you're still up," the sheriff says as she struggles out of her jacket and kicks off her boots inelegantly, almost toppling over._

_"And you're drunk," Regina states and her face shows nothing but disdain as she picks up the other woman's carelessly discarded belongings and put them carefully aside, realizing it would probably be futile to inform the blonde she had actually been sleeping._

_"Just a little," Emma exclaims as she squints and moves her fingers slightly apart to indicate how little._

_Had the former mayor not been so irritated she would have found the sight a little cute._

_"Why don't you take a seat in the living room?" she coos, not knowing how a drunken sheriff will respond to hostility and finding it safer to try the gentle approach. When she's sure the woman is settled on the sofa, she moves swiftly into the kitchen._

_"Here," she says when she returns with a large glass and Emma takes it obediently - even raising it to her lips - before she seems to remember something and gives the brunette a suspicious look over the rim of her glass._

_"What is it?"_

_Regina rolls her eyes at the skepticism. "It's water dear. I figured you could use some."_

_"Oh," the blonde replies with a crooked smile as she takes a large gulp._

_"Where's Henry?" the brunette asks with pretend calm, her mind screaming that the sheriff had better not let their son see her like this._

_"Oh, he's at Mary Margaret's-I mean Snow's." Emma laughs for a moment before suddenly going somber._

_"How weird is it that my roommate really is a fairytale character? And my mom."_

_The blonde stops to contemplate this for a moment and Regina feels something tugging slightly in her chest, prompting her to open her mouth, but before she can say anything the other woman continues._

_"It's so fucked up. Suddenly my friend is my mom and everything's changed. She's nagging and overprotective and disapproves of almost anything and there's no way I can live with her any more now. She drives me fucking crazy."_

_"Miss Swan-" Regina tries when the sheriff is forced to take a breath. She really doesn't want to listen to the other woman's tirade. But Emma's on a roll now._

_"I mean. She's my own freaking age and still she expects me to call her mom and listen to what she says and be obedient like I'm a child. She can't expect me to change just because she's suddenly Snow White again. I don't have freaking dual personalities, I've always been just Emma and I can't change who I am."_

_"Miss Swan, I really don't think-"_

_"And Snow is probably gonna want to live with her 'prince Charming' now so even if she didn't drive me completely up the wall, I'm definitely gonna have to get away, because it's just 'eww' to think about what they'll be doing and where the hell am I gonna stay?"_

_Emma lets out a huff of annoyance as she leans back on the sofa and crosses her arms defiantly, looking imploringly at the brunette sitting opposite her._

_It takes a moment for Regina to realize the blonde is expecting her to say something. She's still trying to make sense of all the things the other woman has blurted out in her drunken state._

_"I don't know what you want me to say."_

_The sheriff sighs dramatically before turning so she can lie down on the sofa, wiggling to get comfortable._

_"Say that everything is going to be okay! Because right now I feel like there's too much going on at the same time, too many expectations and I just need a freaking moment to try and figure it all out."_

_"I'm sure everything will work itself out Miss Swan," Regina says briskly, taking note of the other woman's more slurred words and drooping eyes. The blonde doesn't respond and when the former mayor sees the closed eyes she quickly rises from her seat._

_"Miss Swan, you are not falling asleep on my sofa," she shrieks, making the blonde jump slightly._

_"What?" she replies groggily. She feels so drained._

_"Get up!" the brunette demands as she start poking the other woman._

_"Alright, alright," Emma shouts as she struggles into a sitting position._

_"Follow me," Regina says as she grips the blonde's arm and pulls._

_A prickling starts in her arm where the brunette is touching her skin, quickly spreading outwards and feeling almost like a soothing stream of water. Suddenly she's much more awake and aware, but before she can try to process the feeling the other woman has recoiled from her as if burned._

_"What the hell was that?" Emma asks with a mixture of interest and fear._

_"I…don't know," Regina replies shakily, trying to brush it off. The sheriff notes that it's not a complete lie, but not the truth either. She's gonna have to investigate when she's sober and not so tired._

_"I can't believe you're gonna kick me out," she says with a pout, pretending she's letting her curiosity go._

_"Of course I'm not Miss Swan. Who knows what could happen to you in your current state. Henry would be furious if you were found dead in a ditch somewhere because I let you stumble around in the middle of the night drunk off your ass." _

_"Then why won't you let me crash on your couch?"_

_"Because I don't want to have to clean it afterwards when I have several perfectly pristine guest rooms you can sleep in." Regina replies in a tone that states the blonde clearly should have managed to think that up for herself._

_"Now again, will you please follow me?"_

_Emma rolls her eyes theatrically at the woman's back, but trails obediently behind her. She briefly entertains the idea of reaching out to touch the other woman when they're walking up the staircase just to see her reaction, but she doesn't want to risk actually being thrown out in the cold._

_Regina opens a door almost at the end of the hallway and gestures for the sheriff to move inside. When the blonde sees the big bed, her mind finally catches up with her body and a sudden fatigue crashes over her. She throws herself unceremoniously at the bed and wriggles around comically to get under the duvet._

_When she's finally under it and looks around, the brunette is standing next to the bed with an unimpressed expression. Emma just gives a goofy grin in response._

_"I've left the bathroom lights on and the door ajar in case you need it."_

_"Awesome, thanks." The blonde replies as she turns on her side and wrap the duvet all the way around her and up under her chin._

_"Well, goodnight then Miss Swan," the former mayor says a little uncertainly as she turns to walk away._

_"Night Regina." And had the sheriff not already had her eyes closed she would have seen the slight faltering in the other woman's steps at how softly her name was spoken._


	2. Chapter 2

Rating: K+

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and I make no profit from them.

* * *

"Oh my God Emma, I've been worried sick," Snow shrieks as she opens the door and throws herself at the blonde. Emma tries her best to not flinch, but there's no hiding how her body goes rigid as she's wrapped up in a hug.

"Where have you been, I've tried calling you a million times," the dark haired woman continues as her eyes sweep over her daughter, making sure she's not hurt.

"Sorry, I kinda left all my stuff at Regina's," the sheriff replies with a sheepish shrug, groaning internally at the way the other woman's eyes narrow at the name.

"What did she make you do?"

"Jesus, why do you always assume she's scheming or manipulating? She didn't make me do anything, I went to her okay?" The child in her is delighted at the chastised look that passes over Snow's features at being scolded by her own daughter, but the other woman's expression is soon replaced by confusion.

"Why would you go to _her_?" she spits out.

The answer to that will no doubt start a hefty argument, something the blonde is not up for in her current state.

"Look, can we please talk about this later? I need to sleep."

"Sleep, why? It's midday, are you okay?" the dark haired woman's hand moves to brush against Emma's forehead, but the sheriff bats it away instinctively. A flash of regret hits her at the hurt look on Snow's face.

"Please, later okay?" she pleads with the other woman.

Snow seems to contemplate her daughter for a moment before giving a curt nod.

Emma sighs in relief when she finally moves inside the apartment, but turns confused to the dark haired woman when she finds it empty. She had half expected Henry to come running at her.

"Charming took him outside to keep entertained so he wouldn't worry about you," Snow explains before the blonde can ask, not quite hiding her disapproval.

Had her head not been killing her, Emma would have risen to the bait.

"Thanks," she mutters instead as she drags her feet up the stairs and falls onto her bed face first. She smiles softly at the scent of Henry and falls asleep faster then she can remember doing for a long while.

* * *

Regina Mills internally cringes at the bell ringing when she walks inside the shop signaling her presence. The smile on Rumpelstiltskin's face when he sees her makes her wish for a second that Belle could be present with them. Not that that girl has any business knowing what the former Queen is there for, but she does have a way of taming the man's wickedness somewhat and it would be nice to not have to deal with Rumpelstiltskin's unpleasantness for once. She has enough grief in her life right now without adding him too.

"Your Majesty," he says as he curtseys, knowing how much she detests the old title and mocking gesture. He's impressed at how well she hides her disdain; clearly she had expected it.

Instead of a verbal reply she walks until she's standing up close to him, trying to appear intimidating and secure as she towers slightly above the man supporting himself on his stick. Had the brunette still been her former unstable Evil Queen she would have perhaps succeeded a little, but Rumpel knows she hasn't been for a long time and so he finds it amusing instead.

"What brings you by on this most glorious day?" he asks calmly, satisfied when the former mayor narrows her eyes disapprovingly at the subtle dig that Snow and 'the Savior' have returned.

"We need to discuss protective measures," she states curtly, knowing he'll understand she's talking about her mother.

"I'm not sure it's going to do much difference now. There's no way to know when or how she'll make it here."

"There has to be something we can do," Regina asks, not quite able to hide her desperation.

"I might be able to find a way to let us know about any foreign presences but I can't be sure until tomorrow at the earliest."

His statement doesn't seem to soothe the former Queen much. She had obviously hoped for something that could prevent Cora from appearing in Storybrooke.

"Until tomorrow then?" he asks when she doesn't say anything else, gesturing to the door.

"There is one more thing," she replies smoothly, ignoring the man's hint for her to leave.

"What's that dearie?" He finds himself slightly curious as to what the brunette could want that's not related to the threat of Cora returning.

Regina seems reluctant to ask, obviously not wishing to tell him too much and trying to decide how to best keep him in the dark.

"Do you have anything that can…extract magic?"

His expression changes to one of interest.

"Having problems after absorbing all the fairy dust?" he questions as his eyes sweep over her to look for any visible effects or changes.

"Of course not," she brushes him off, trying to sound nonchalant. "But you know I'm trying to stay off the magic for Henry."

He feels slightly disappointed that she won't indulge him. When Regina consumed all that energy, he had half feared she would end up dead – and he is still silently impressed she isn't – but it seems obvious to him that she would suffer some kind of after effect.

And he didn't find out so much about magic by not poking and probing; trying things none other dared and sticking his nose further than he probably should have.

Yes, he'll most definitely have to keep an extra careful eye on the former Queen for a while to see if he can figure out the ramifications of devouring so much magic meant to kill.

"Well, it just so happens that I might know the person who can help you," he replies gleefully, knowing how furious his suggestion will make her.

"Person?" she asks confused. She had hoped he would have an artifact or something similar she could transfer the foreign magic residing in her into.

"Indeed! Just yesterday you helped a certain someone return to this realm and this problem you're having would seem like the perfect situation for a Savior to, well, save, don't you think?"

He almost laughs out loud at the look of shock and disdain she dons at his words.

"I don't see how Miss Swan can help me," she grits out, betraying her outer calm and apparent indifference.

"That, I'm afraid, is for you and Miss Swan to figure out."

For a moment Rumpelstiltskin sees a flash of the Evil Queen as darkness passes over her features and her right hand twitches, as if she's itching to use magic to force him into submission or torture him; possibly even kill him so she can be rid of his nuisance.

But then it's gone and she spins around quickly, slamming the door so hard the glass rattles precariously.

* * *

When Emma awakes for the second time that day, she stretches delightedly in bed. Her headache is thankfully gone and she feels a lot more rested.

Her eyes open and she has to suppress the scream almost tearing from her lips as she scrambles into a sitting position. Her son is staring at her with a smile.

"Christ Henry, don't do that, it's creepy," she exclaims as her hand moves to her rapidly thumping heart and the boy's smile falters a little.

"Sorry, Snow wanted me to let you know dinner is ready soon, but you looked so peaceful," he replies innocently, forcing a wry smile from his second mom.

"That's sweet kid, just don't do it again. Please?"

"Ok," he replies with a grin, turning to leave.

"Hey Henry, can I talk to you a moment?" she calls, halting his retreat. She's not sure why she does, but there's a tiny, annoying voice in the back of her mind trying to tell her something.

"Sure, what's up?" he asks as he bounds down opposite her on the bed.

"Can we talk about your mom?"

His face turns to one of childish defiance.

"You're my mom!"

"Regina is your mom, she's the one who raised you," she responds sharply, taken aback by his apparent animosity towards the former mayor. From what she gathered the day before, the brunette has been trying to turn over a new leaf, promising Henry to not use magic and letting him stay with David.

"She's the Evil Queen and even if she wasn't you're my _real_ mom," he states as if it should explain everything.

Emma has to fight the urge to yell at him, trying to remember that he's just a kid; a hard-headed, naive and ignorant one, but still a child.

"Look, I don't care who she is or what she's done, she's still your mom and you treat her with respect am I clear?"

He looks shocked at the way she speaks to him – maybe because she actually sounds like the brunette – but she can't be 'the cool mom' if he won't listen to the one responsible for raising him.

He nods uncertainly at her and she tries to give him a reassuring smile.

"You said your mom saved us, can you tell me how?" For a moment it looks like the boy is going to protest against her pointed use of the word 'mom', but he seems to think better of it.

"Well she and Mr. Gold used some kind of magic to make sure no one could get back because they were afraid Cora would come here, but I told her you would make it so she removed all the magic," he blurted in one quick breath, obviously proud that he had managed to help.

"Remove the magic? How?"

"She just stuck out her hands and all this green light seemed to get sucked into them."

"Right," Emma answered thoughtfully. It couldn't be that easy could it? Unwillingly her mind flashed back to the brunette trying to scramble off the ground. How had the woman wound up down on the ground in the first place?

"What about after?"

"What do you mean?" Henry asks confused.

"After she removed all the magic what happened? How did she end up on the ground?" she expands, trying to remember every detail from the chaos of their return.

"I don't know, I guess she got blasted sideways. I wasn't really looking at her, I was looking for you," he says with a shrug and she can't blame his neglect of the former Queen. After all, she hadn't been any better. She had left the brunette behind just as much as everyone else in her delight at being back.

_Perfect, that's twice I've been an ungrateful ass to her in the short time I've been back._

She gives him a goofy smile as she rises from the bed and races him downstairs.

* * *

Dinner is a subdued affair as both women in the apartment prepare for the conversation they know they need to have.

When they're done eating, Charming none too conspicuously tells Henry he needs his help fixing something, leaving mother and daughter to stare at each other awkwardly.

"Are you going to tell me why you went to Regina last night?" Snow says, breaking the silence.

"Not really," Emma shrugs, causing the dark haired woman to sigh at how reserved and vague she's being.

"I don't mean to sound nagging-"

"So don't!"

"But you have to be careful Emma, Regina is-"

"I know okay, I've butted heads with her for over half a year and people are standing in line telling me all the bad things she's done," the blonde says irritably. She's getting tired of hearing the same tune over and over again.

"Then why do you keep running after her?"

"I'm not," the sheriff says a little louder than she intended. "I just need to get away from all you biased people so I can think."

She doesn't like the shocked and hurt look that comes over the other woman, but she can't pretend everything is perfect either, that's never been her way.

It has been easy enough to ignore her conflicted emotions and turmoiled thoughts when they've been away, because there they had to constantly fight and run to survive and try to find a way back. But now that the promise of imminent death is gone for a moment so she can actually think, she can't help but feel overwhelmed.

"But why can't you talk to me? I'm your mother," Snow says sadly and the blonde has to remind herself of her own confused feelings to be able to continue.

"Exactly, and that's why you can't be impartial any more. Suddenly I don't have my friend and roommate, but a whole different person who treats me like a child when I do something she doesn't approve of and everyone I thought I knew is someone else and magic is freaking real. It's just too much to take in all at once."

Snow looks crestfallen at what she's hearing.

"I don't know what I can do," she says softly, looking pleadingly at her daughter.

"I just need some time and space," Emma explains after a moment, willing her mother to understand.

"And how will you manage that?" the dark haired woman questions genuinely.

"Well," the blonde starts, scratching awkwardly at her arm. "For starters I think I need to find somewhere else to live."

"Oh Emma that's really not necessary, I-" Snow starts, but at the look she receives from the sheriff she promptly shuts her mouth.

"I know David – Charming - and Henry have been staying here, and I think I'm assuming correctly when I say you want him to stay with you right?"

Snow looks like she's about to deny it, but then thinks better of it and nods her affirmation instead.

"And since Henry is so mind-set on Regina being evil right now, he's gonna have to stay in my room for the time being." She gives a pointed glare as Snow's mouth open – no doubt to agree with Henry – making it clear she's not interested in hearing it.

"So it's gonna be pretty crowded here," she finishes, the lack of argument indicative that the other woman seems to get the point, even if she doesn't like it.

"Where will you go?" the dark haired woman finally asks dejectedly.

The urge to say she might ask Regina to let her crash for a while is tempting, but it would be too spiteful against her mother and then she'd never be allowed to leave this apartment.

"I'll probably rent at Granny's until I can find something more suitable and permanent."

It's clear that Snow thinks it unnecessary, but she manages to hold her tongue.

"Right," Emma says awkwardly. "I'll just go out for a few errands then, sort out some stuff."

The dark haired woman nods mutely, clearly deep in thought over everything the blonde has told her.

"Be back later," the sheriff calls over her back as she practically runs from the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Rating: T (for a bad word)

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: I hope this isn't getting too boring for people. But since I've realized this isn't gonna be a particularly short story it's unfortunately important to write build-ups, explanations, natural progressions and so on to make it feel like a real story. I appreciate everyone following and reviewing the story, please keep it up ;)

* * *

Arranging things with Granny had been surprisingly quick and easy, which means that Emma now finds herself staring at the mayoral mansion's pathway a little sooner than she feels prepared for. There is no denying that she needs to get her stuff back though, which also means she will have to talk to the former Queen. Maybe if Regina stays polite enough she'll even give her a thank you.

When the door opens, the brunette is standing with the hand not holding the door on her hip and giving Emma an unimpressed expression.

"Back so soon Miss Swan?" she goads and the blonde just gives her a sour look and yet again promptly walks inside without waiting for an invitation.

"By all means, make yourself at home, _again_," the former mayor snaps irritably, slamming her own door a little more fiercely than she intends. It's amazing how people seem to have lost their manners when the curse broke.

_Not that the sheriff ever had much._

"I'm just here to get my stuff back okay?" Emma replies defensively, ignoring how her mind is mocking her for only telling half the truth. Thank God the other woman can't tell when someone lies.

"Of course you are," Regina replies, her tone overtly sweet and her smile not reaching her eyes, reminding the blonde that the other woman has made a living of reading people and can probably tell a lie without having any 'super power' like she has.

She disappears for but a moment and returns with a paper bag.

"No need to thank me dear," she says as she almost throws the bag at the sheriff.

"Maybe I would if you weren't acting like a bitch all the time," Emma replies hotly, fighting the urge to stomp her foot in annoyance.

"It's called being polite, you could try it sometime," the brunette shoots back just as quickly, taking an infuriated step towards the other woman.

And then they're standing face to face in a silent fight, Regina with her hands clenched tightly; mirrored by the blonde who has dropped the bag unceremoniously on the floor.

_When had they gotten this close? _

They're eyes are locked in a heated stare, neither woman willing to surrender. And then the strangest thing happens. The unmistakable flash of pain rushes over the former Queen's face and she turns quickly away, shielding herself from Emma's view.

"Regina, are you okay?" the blonde asks confused, her hand reaching automatically to support the other woman. She barely has time to process the prickly feeling in her hand where their skin is touching before she's pushed away.

"Get off me," the brunette grits out as the sheriff stumbles to regain her footing before she can fall flat on her ass, the other woman bending over slightly.

She's pretty sure she doesn't imagine the brief flash of green light that catches her eyes as she is forced back.

As if approaching a skittish animal she moves in a wide circle around Regina so she can get in front of the other woman, but even as she does the brunette is straightening back up and there's no green in sight.

"What the hell was that?" Emma exclaims with wide eyes, but the former mayor is already composed, looking for all the word like nothing unusual just happened.

"It's nothing Miss Swan."

"That was not nothing Regina," the blonde replies firmly, her voice rising slightly in annoyance at the other woman's constant refusal to let her in on anything.

"I am not your friend and therefore it is none of your concern," the former queen responds curtly, her arms folding defiantly in front of her.

"You're Henry's mom, you'll always be my concern," she replies without thinking and she doesn't miss the flicker of surprise she sees before Regina manages to school her features again.

"Yes well, you can run along and tell him I'll be just fine," the former Queen answers dismissively and Emma wants to scream in frustration.

"Can we please try to talk like normal people for once?"

"Normal?!" Regina scoffs. "There's nothing normal about us dear, I'm the Evil Queen and you're the Savior remember?"

"Stop calling me that," the blonde tosses back with hostility. She really does hate being called that, especially since she doesn't feel like one.

"Besides, there's not much evil about you compared to your mother," she adds with a crooked smile and her stance softens at the half amused smile Regina gives her.

"There is some truth to that at least," the brunette agrees.

"We need to talk about her," Emma states suddenly serious, any hint of playfulness gone.

"Do we?" the former Queen inquires as she cocks her head slightly giving every indication that they don't.

"Yes, we need to figure out how to stop her from coming here and figure out what she wants."

Regina huffs and motions for the other woman to follow her into her study where they sit down stiffly; the brunette behind her desk to create distance and a feeling of superiority over the other woman.

"I've already talked to Rumpelstiltskin Miss Swan, and unfortunately it appears to be no way to stop my mother from eventually finding a way to Storybrooke."

Emma lets out a sigh at this information, leaning back in the chair she's currently occupying. She should have known the former mayor wouldn't waste time trying to find a solution. Regina is many things, but she's certainly no slacker and she's unyielding when it comes to Henry's safety.

"As for what my mother wants, I presume she's here to take away everything I care about. She can be...vindictive."

At this Emma leans forward in her seat, delighted that she knows something the brunette doesn't for once.

"I don't think so. Right before she tried to kill Mary Mar-Snow, she said she wanted to come here because you needed her."

"She tried to kill Snow?" Regina asks with genuine surprise coating her words.

"She said she wanted to give you what you wanted the most and then she went to rip out her heart, but I pushed her away. Having someone's hand inside your chest: _not_ a pleasant experience by the way," she joked, but the brunette's face showed only horror.

"She ripped out your heart," Regina states softly to herself, her own heart picking up its pace.

_That means Cora is controlling Emma._

And the feeling welling up inside her cannot be mistaken for anything other than disappointment and sadness.

"She tried, but she couldn't," the blonde adds quickly, not liking the look of realization and sudden determination on the other woman's face and the former Queen does a double take at the words.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, she tried to pull it out, but she couldn't," the sheriff answers slowly, shrugging her shoulders to indicate she has no idea why Cora had been unable to.

The former mayor pushes back her chair so quickly Emma instinctually jumps back in her own as if to shield herself from an attack. But no attack comes. In three long strides Regina is standing next to her, bending down and laying her hand over where her heart should be.

"Uh, okay," the blonde utters confused, her heart skipping a beat at how half of the brunette's palm is positioned on the upper half of her breast.

_What the hell?_

For a moment Regina's brows furrow in concentration and the sheriff gets the instinct impression she's being x-rayed.

"How is that even possible?" the former Queen asks with wonder, retracting her hand and straightening; obviously pleased with whatever she found.

"I have no idea. Gold said it's probably a by-product of being a child of 'True Love'," Emma responds with a grimace.

Regina huffs her identical disdain as she moves to sit back down, once again composed and formal.

"Are you sure that's what Cora said?" she questions thoughtfully as if their conversation hasn't just been interrupted and it takes a second for the blonde to remember what the other woman is referring to.

"Uh, yeah I'm pretty sure, I was right there," she answers sarcastically, simply raising her eyebrows in challenge at the stare she receives.

"So what are we gonna do?" the sheriff prods when nothing more seems to be forthcoming from Regina who looks deep in thought.

"I'm not sure Miss Swan," she responds curtly, moving to perch on her desk across from the blonde and crossing her arms to appear intimidating.

_Old habits die hard after all._

"But you have an idea or suggestion right?" Emma presses, looking imploringly up at the other woman.

"The first thing that comes to mind is to create protective wards around my home and Snow's apartment to prevent her from being able to enter and possibly get to Henry. But that would require-"

"Magic," the sheriff interrupts in understanding.

The room goes silent as the two women contemplate each other carefully.

"Do it!" Emma says after a moment, her determination clear.

"It's not that easy I'm afraid," the former Queen answers with a sigh and the blonde's brows furrow in confusion.

"I promised my son I wouldn't use magic."

"Then make sure he doesn't know. I think just this once it's okay considering you're trying to protect him," Emma states pleadingly, not bothering to hide her desperation.

Regina looks conflicted as she weighs the pros and cons of breaking her promise to her son.

"I…Fine, I'll do it tomorrow after I've talked to Rumpelstiltskin."

"You're going to Gold? I want to come too," the sheriff says quickly, not missing the other woman's annoyed look at what is often called 'her interfering ways'.

"That won't be necessary Miss Swan. You need to make sure Henry is not present when I come to secure the apartment."

Emma gives the brunette a sour look that the woman promptly ignores.

"I'll call you tomorrow when you're needed. Now please get out of my house."

When the door closes behind her, the bag with her belongings secure in her hand, Emma already has her plans ready for tomorrow. There's no way she's going to let Regina dictate what she does and what she gets to know where their son is concerned. She's just going to have to get up at the crack of dawn and follow the stubborn woman to make sure she doesn't miss out on anything. And besides, even if the former mayor refuses to admit it or ask for it, it's always nice to have some support and know you're not alone.


	4. Chapter 4

Rating: The first part in italics are light M, but the rest is T.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: A big thank you to fledge who took the time to read through the chapter to check for any big mistakes.

* * *

_They are standing way too close again. She can feel the brunette's warm breath against her own lips and the dark pools staring back at her are almost black with lust. Those eyes break away from her own gaze to look down as she feels soft fingers stroking at the top of her breast. _

_And with an internal flinch she realizes she's not wearing any clothes as her eyes land on the hand currently stroking her gently. The fingers move lower to graze a nipple that puckers slightly at the contact and when she raises her gaze to stare at the other woman's face she sees that it's full of wonder._

_She lets out a moan when hands shift to cup her mounds and thumbs stroke firmly over rapidly hardening nipples._

_And then one hand starts moving southward along her stomach and she has to bite her lip to keep silent as she becomes aware of her rapidly building excitement. She really wishes that hand would hurry up to where she really needs it to be. But it seems to take forever. And just as fingers chafe over neatly trimmed curls, the brunette leans sideways so she can breathe into her ear._

_"You're beautiful Miss Swan."_

* * *

Emma Swan wakes with a start, her heart hammering and body tingling. She quickly sits upright and throws off her duvet, the cold floor under her feet as she moves them over the edge of the bed feeling oddly soothing in her panic.

"What the hell?" she says out loud to the dark and empty room. How could she be dreaming that kind of dream about Regina Mills?

Transfixed, she stares into the darkness for long moments before she reaches for her phone on the bedside table.

5:17. Well at least it means she can follow through on her plans to stalk Regina because there's no way she's gonna be able to get back to sleep now.

_A long shower first._

Almost 30 minutes later the blonde is shimmying into her jeans feeling decidedly calmer than when she woke up. She has come to the conclusion that her dream doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the uptight woman.

It was just an unfortunate blend of her unconsciousness because most of the previous evening she had been thinking about the former mayor and what would happen today and she hasn't been getting much action since coming to Storybrooke.

Yes that has to be it. So now what to do? It isn't even six yet so she can't count on anyone to be out and about.

* * *

Regina Mills wakes up to pain, the magic pulsing around her hands casting a green hue around the room. She grits her teeth and fights the urge to scream but is unable to hold back the groan that escapes past her vocal chords. She's aware of the thin sheet of perspiration coating her skin as she focuses on forcing the foreign magic back inside her.

When the pain finally subsides she releases a breath in both relief and annoyance. She might actually have to let the sheriff in on her current predicament as the pain seems to be growing stronger and the frequencies increasing exponentially the longer she keeps forcing it back inside. She glances at her clock and groans. 5.37.

Well she's certainly not going to be able to go back to sleep so she might as well take a long shower and get an early start on what is sure to be a long day.

When the former Queen walks towards her closet after her shower - already going over her clothing options in her mind - she briefly glances out of her bedroom windows.

_What the hell?_

She stops abruptly and turns back to stare out properly. That's definitely Emma Swan's ugly yellow bug standing parked not far from her entrance.

_What is the blonde doing out there? Has she stayed out there all night stalking her? No, she definitely wasn't there when she went to bed. Then the only explanation would be that she wants to make sure she isn't left out of the loop. God, that woman really is too hard headed for her own good._

But even as the brunette quickly shimmies into a purple dress, she can't hide the slight amusement and intrigue she feels. The polite thing to do would be to invite the poor girl in to warm herself with a cup of coffee while she gets ready. It would be unfortunate if the sheriff ended up with a cold because she's waiting for her. No doubt Henry would find a way to blame her for that too.

Yes, that is definitely the only reason she chooses to forego her make-up and quickly slides into a coat and out the door into the cold morning air.

* * *

When she steps out into the chill morning air, Emma doesn't have any particular plans other than driving around in her car for a while. Her subconscious seems to have other ideas though as she finds that she's driven to the mayoral estate.

With nothing better to do since the whole town is asleep anyway, she figures she might as well keep an eye out in case Regina decides to get an early start.

As she turns off the engine and tries to make herself as comfortable as possible, her mind goes back to the previous evening.

Henry was not thrilled when she got back and told him she would be packing some of her stuff and renting at Granny's. He tried to insist on coming with her and she told him off as nicely as she could, explaining that she needed the time alone to think since everything was changing now. He nodded in as much understanding as could be expected from a child who still saw everything as clear as black and white with no shades of grey blurring their vision.

Funny how that gray seemed to take on the form of a certain former mayor.

And then her thoughts unwillingly turn to the dream that so freaked her out that morning – still kind of does if she's being honest. It's not that she minds that she dreamt about a woman, but because that woman was Regina Mills; her son's adoptive mom, uptight Mayor of Storybrooke and apparently also a former Evil Queen.

Fine, so the woman was good looking and had a definite air of sensuality about her. But she was also stubborn and infuriating and sometimes downright mean.

_Sounding familiar? _her own mind mocks her, and she mentally smacks it. She is nothing like the other woman.

Even entertaining the idea of Regina and herself as ever being more than acquaintances who tolerate each other for the sake of others is ridiculous and not unlike asking for trouble.

The rapping on her window causes the half slumbering woman to jump and she groans when she sees the annoyed and disbelieving face of the former mayor as she bends slightly to be able to look at her through the glass.

"Morning," she offers sheepishly as she rolls down the window slightly.

"Am I correct in assuming you're gonna stay out here until I leave?"

"Pretty much," Emma confirms with an innocent smile, taking note of the apparently make-up free face and slightly wet hair of the other woman. She's clearly fresh from the shower. It's amazing how different she looks without the red lipstick and the perfect hair. It makes her look younger and softer and not any less pleasing to the eye.

_Oh my God stop thinking things like that._

"In that case I really think it would be better if you came inside while I finished," Regina states as she straightens.

"Huh?" the blonde replies stupidly, not quite managing to believe what she's hearing. Before the curse broke the former mayor would have been delighted to let her freeze her ass off while waiting for her.

"Hurry along Miss Swan," the brunette throws over her shoulder as she starts walking back to her house.

Emma sits gaping for all of two seconds before she scrambles to open the door and runs to catch up with the woman who's almost at the entrance when she falls into step behind her.

It takes almost half an hour before the former mayor comes back downstairs after having provided Emma with coffee. The make-up is back on and her hair once again pristine.

"I need to eat before we get going. Do you want some breakfast?"

The blonde's stomach rumbles in reply and she grins embarrassed as Regina's lips curve slightly in amusement.

When Emma gets into her car to meet the former Queen at Rumpelstiltskin's shop, the clock is roughly a quarter to eight. It seems awfully early to visit him, but Regina has assured her the man will be up.

It feels like a waste of time and gas to drive separately, but she knows better than to suggest they share a car. At least this way she can listen to loud music to try and keep herself alert, her body not surprisingly feeling drowsy when she got some food in her, probably because of the little sleep and rude awakening this morning.

And she definitely did not find herself stealing glances at the other woman's lips when they were eating. Nope, absolutely not.

* * *

"Your Majesty," Rumpelstiltskin says with his always sarcastic bow as she enters his shop, not at all surprised at her early hour visit.

"Ah, I see you brought company," he adds when he straightens and sees Emma following, her expression half confused, half disgusted at his obvious mockery of the former Queen.

"Not voluntarily I assure you," Regina replies snidely and the blonde rolls her eyes.

"So you haven't let Miss Swan in on your little…problem then?" he says with a sly smile, delighted of the possibility to create ever more chaos and tension.

"What problem?" the sheriff pipes in immediately, her gaze flitting curiously between the man and woman.

"Nothing," the brunette replies firmly, staring daggers at the shorter man.

"Now, now Your Majesty, we both know she's the only one who can help you."

"Help with what?" the blonde queries, getting annoyed at how they both seem to ignore her and her questions.

"Nothing Miss Swan," Regina tosses back, barely sparing a glance her way.

"Tell me," Emma demands, moving her gaze and request to the man grinning in amusement.

"Don't!" the former Queen warns as Rumpel gives her a calculating look, weighing what she could do if he continues.

"I won't ruin all the fun and tell you the details. You'll have to wrestle that from our esteemed Mayor, but let's just say our lovely Evil Queen is suffering some after effects of ensuring your safe return back to this world. And the only one who can help her is the Savior."

Emma's brows furrow in confusion as she turns to look at the other woman scowling at the man who's looking entirely too pleased with the whole thing.

"Regina?" she questions, forcing brown eyes to meet green.

"Later" the brunette states firmly as she sighs in defeat. "We need to discuss the most urgent matters first."

Emma nods in agreement, but gives her a look that tells the other woman they _will _talk about it later.

"What have you found out?" Regina asks as politely as she can manage in her vast annoyance with the ever meddling man.

"Bad news I'm afraid," he answers as he suddenly turns serious. "I put out some feelers last night, but it proved quite unnecessary."

Suddenly, the mood inside the shop has shifted, the air feeling thicker and the darkness of the room greater.

"What does that mean?" the sheriff asks confused, obviously having no idea what they're talking about when it comes to magic. She looks imploringly from Gold to the suddenly grave face of the other woman.

"It means-" Regina croaks out, clearing her throat and trying to pull herself together. "It means she's already here."

"What?" Emma exclaims with a gasp, her stomach knotting painfully with dread. If she's reacting this way to the news, she can only imagine how mortified the brunette must be.

"What do we do?" she pleads to the room when no one says anything for long moments, everyone savoring the heavy truth and all it entails.

"We discuss tactics and protective measurements and try to form some sort of plan," Regina responds after a moment, her stance shifting to one of sudden determination as she turns to the sheriff.

"But first things first, take me to the apartment. Now!"


	5. Chapter 5

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and don't make any profit from them

* * *

The fact Regina gets into the yellow bug without a single complain or degrading remark, tells the blonde just how scared and in a rush she must be. And this in turn makes her terrified, causing her to speed a little faster than is strictly safe to get to the apartment as quick as possible.

No words are exchanged until the car is parked.

"Oh shit, I forgot to call Snow, Henry will still be in the apartment."

She had completely forgotten what she had promised the brunette the other day about making sure he is away so he can't find out about her using magic.

"Never mind that Miss Swan, I think it's for the better. I don't want him anywhere I can't supervise now that my mother is here."

"So, uh, what exactly are you gonna do?" Emma asks as they make their way inside the apartment complex.

"I'm going to place protective wards around the apartment that prevents Cora or Hook from being able to enter." She glances over and sighs at the blank look she sees. Apparently, she'll have to simplify everything for the blonde woman when it comes to magic.

_Well of course, she's never known it, _she reminds herself.

"It means there will be something close to invisible walls surrounding the place that solidifies if my mother or her…sidekick tries to enter."

Emma seems more content with that explanation and she stays uncharacteristically quiet as they come to a halt a little way from the apartment door.

Not wanting to waste a moment, the former Queen takes a steadying breath as she lifts her arms. The blonde finds the image of the brunette standing with her arms stretched forward and a look of deep concentration comical.

But then what looks like purple smoke is starting to seep out of the woman's hands and she's barely able to contain her surprised gasp. She's not sure she'll ever get used to the fact that magic is real. The purple clouds keep coming and coming from the former mayor's hands, disappearing into the wall and door and Emma wonders briefly if her parents and Henry can see it on the other side.

As suddenly as it started, all traces of the purple fog are gone. And then Regina sways dangerously and seems to slump together and it feels like everything is moving in slow motion. Instinctively – and surprised by her own quick reaction – the sheriff reaches out and catches her before she can crumble to the ground.

"Jesus Regina," Emma grounds out as she focuses on pulling the other woman's weight up so she can support herself on the blonde.

"I need you to get me home before anyone sees me." And the sheriff understands that it implicitly means Snow or Henry.

But before she can reply there's rustling behind the door and the former Queen barely has time to push away from the support of the other woman before Snow is poking her head out curiously.

"Regina, Emma," she exclaims surprised. "I thought I felt something, what are you doing here?"

The blonde knows it'll only be so long the other woman can pretend she's not about to collapse so she quickly forces herself inside.

"It's complicated and we're short on time. I'll tell you later, keep Henry in the apartment" she whispers before she shuts the door in her mother's bewildered face.

As soon as they've put some distance on the door so Regina knows Snow can't see her, she lets herself be supported by the sheriff.

Since it's still fairly early in the morning no one seems to be out in the streets when the former mayor sticks her head out cautiously to look. It's a small blessing, since she's not sure she will actually manage to walk by herself all of the 10 meters to Emma's bug.

* * *

The silence in the car feels pressing to the blonde as she keeps glancing worriedly over at the woman next to her whose eyes are closed, body slumped back in the seat.

"Emma, pull over."

The sheriff almost loses control of the car as she starts, not sure what catches her off guard the most; the odd request or the fact Regina actually said her name.

"Wha-" she says stupidly, glancing at the woman who's suddenly looking frantic.

"Just do it. Quick," the brunette barks and the thought of not complying doesn't even cross Emma's mind as she quickly looks to make sure it's clear before pulling over to the side.

She barely has enough time to stop the car before the former Queen is fumbling with the door, almost falling out of it.

She doesn't know what to expect as she rushes out of her own door and around the car, looking both left and right to try to find out where the other woman went. She's surprised to see her sitting with her back against the car, eyes screwed shut in concentration and her hands hidden inside her coat.

"What the hell Regina-" she starts, but then the brunette lets out a soft cry of unmistakable pain and she quickly drops down to her knees next to the woman.

"Tell me what to do," she pleads, barely restraining herself from gripping the former mayor who's so obviously in distress, grinding her teeth together to try and contain any sounds from escaping.

"I don't know what to do, what can I do?" Emma rushes on, feeling close to panic and completely helpless as she watches Regina's head slam back against the car as she lets out a groan of despair.

And then eyes alight with green open and the blonde lets out a cry of surprise almost falling backwards on instinct.

"You need to get away from me," the former Queen croaks in obvious torment as a lone tear makes its way from the corner of her eye down her cheek.

"I can't control it." And as if to prove it she unfolds her clenched fists from inside her coat and shows how they're burning green. Using all her magic had been a mistake, it had rendered her helpless against the foreign powers.

"There has to be something we can do," Emma almost shouts, frantic and scared, unable to think rationally.

"Please go," Regina grounds out, willing the stubborn woman to do what she asks for once. "I don't know what's going to happen."

"I can't just leave you," the sheriff yells distraught, eyes filling with tears of desperation.

"Leave!" the brunette yells back before she cries out in agony.

"I won't," Emma sobs and she doesn't know why she does it, but she reaches out carelessly to grasp the other woman's fists.

The pain engulfing her is near unbearable. It feels like currents of electricity are moving under her skin, trying to tear her flesh apart to find its way outside. She's vaguely aware of an excruciating scream as her world goes dark for a second and she knows she's dying. But then it's gone.

She blinks groggily as light returns and her eyes slowly focuses again. She's lying on the ground, staring up at the clear sky above. There's faint rustling somewhere to her right and then the unmistakable face of Regina Mills obstruct her view.

"Emma, Emma can you hear me?"

The blonde marvels at the genuine look of worry she sees on the other woman's features. And she's saying her name again. It sounds so nice, coming from those full red lips.

She blinks incomprehensively a couple of times before she seems to come back to her senses.

"Don't mind me, I'm just enjoying the scenery," she grunts, satisfied with the relieved smirk it invokes on the former mayor.

With a groan of discomfort she struggles into a seated position next to the brunette, both leaning their backs against the car. Her body feels not unlike what Emma is imagining it would feel like after a marathon.

"Well, that was eventful," she states as she leans her head back and closes her eyes to rest for a second.

And then Regina is hitting her.

"What the hell were you thinking?" she demands as she slaps the blonde hard on the arm, ignoring the other woman's yelp.

"I told you to get away." Another slap. "You could have killed yourself". And another.

"Ow, Regina stop hitting me," Emma shouts as she tries to shield herself from the outraged woman.

"Of all the stupid and dangerous things you've done," she says with a huff as she finally stops trying to hit the sheriff.

"You could just say thank you, you know," the blonde grumbles as she rubs her arm where she got struck.

"I will not thank you for almost ensuring Henry has neither of his mothers," the brunette states angrily, but Emma can see she's deflating, the anger disappearing as quickly as it flared.

"Is…Is it gone?" she asks hopefully, electing to ignore the former mayor's unkind words and instead focus on how the woman actually referred to Henry as _theirs_ instead of just _hers_.

"I don't know," Regina answers and the sheriff senses no lie, only bewilderment. "You were screaming like you were dying so I pushed you away."

It's meant to sound indifferent and mocking, but the blonde can sense the worry and relief in the other woman.

"Well, I'm sorry for not managing to keep my mouth shut when it felt like my skin was being ripped apart," she answers irritably, scowling at the former Queen.

"Don't worry dear. I'm sure you'll learn."

And Emma realizes that it must have been what the brunette had been feeling yesterday when she pushed her away and today when she tried to flee from the car; and probably several times that the sheriff didn't know of.

"Jesus Regina, why didn't you tell me?" she asks softly, trying not to imagine how much it must have hurt the other woman.

"What was I supposed to say? Hello Miss Swan, to get you back I had to absorb a mountain of fairy dust cursed to kill anyone coming through the portal so now it's trying to tear me apart instead and I can't get rid of it because I promised my son I wouldn't use magic and oh, Rumpelstiltskin says you're the only one who can help me," she replies sarcastically, looking thoroughly unimpressed at the blonde's naiveté.

"I don't know, you could have said something. Then we could have tried to get rid of it sooner and you wouldn't have had to be in so much pain." Emma replies incredulously.

"I made my choice and this was the consequences. I assure you, had I known you would feel the pain too I never would have let you near me."

"You think you deserved it," the blonde states shocked, her anger simmering when the other woman doesn't deny it and refuses to meet her eye.

"That's fucked up. No one deserves that, no matter what," she tosses to the other woman as she scrambles to stand, trying to hide her disdain.

"I think most of the people here would disagree with you," the brunette retorts as she too stands, crossing her arms defiantly.

"Then fuck them all."

"Language, Miss Swan," Regina scolds automatically and the sheriff lets out a huff of frustration as she stomps around the car to the driver's side, feeling that the brunette must be the most infuriating woman she's ever met.

"Get in the goddamn car Regina."

* * *

Somewhat unwillingly and highly doubtful, Emma brings the other woman to her own car at the former mayor's insistence.

"I'm not sure you should be driving," she tries softly, not daring to voice out loud how tired Regina still looks.

"Nonsense, I'm feeling much better."

The blonde scowls slightly at the brush off, but knows she can't make the other woman do anything she doesn't want.

"Why don't you go home and explain the situation to Snow and I'll call you later?" the brunette says sweetly, deliberately not telling the sheriff what she herself will be doing. She really is feeling more drained than she's comfortable with and is fairly certain she'll only fall into bed once she's home. But no one needs to know that. Appearances are everything after all.

Emma looks like she's going to argue more, but apparently she thinks better of it. The former Queen is glad of that.

She's not happy about the next words she hears though.

"Will you call me to let you know you made it home?"

The blonde doesn't know why she's feeling so worried for the other woman, but it's just something about seeing the normally unfaltering and always in control former mayor helpless and exhausted that's unsettling.

"I most certainly will not Miss Swan. You are not my mother and I don't have to answer to you," Regina bristles as she promptly turns and walks to her car, slamming the door and hitting the gas with vigor.

Emma is left wincing and staring after the rapidly disappearing Mercedes.

_That could have ended better. _


	6. Chapter 6

Rating: T.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: Some scenes and dialogue have been shamelessly stolen or altered slightly from the 2x10 episode as I found it good and perfect for my story.

* * *

"Emma what's going on?" Snow asks as soon as she sees her daughter come through the door.

"Cora," she answers as a way of quick explanation and hears the dark haired woman gasp.

"I'll tell you everything, but can you make sure Charming keeps Henry occupied?"

Snow nods quickly, apparently agreeing to keep little ears out of reach from such serious and possibly grave affairs.

After Charming has taken Henry and Snow has made them both tea, they sit down in the living room. And Emma tells the dark haired woman how she and Regina went to Gold to see if they could prevent Cora from coming to Storybrooke and that the woman is apparently already here.

She purposefully neglects to tell that Regina has used magic and all that has happened after that.

"This is very bad news Emma," Snow supplies when she's finished recounting everything.

"I know. We need to tell people that Cora is here." The dark haired woman's face scrunches in thought.

"How? Most people have no idea what she looks like or what she's capable of. She disappeared a few years after Regina married my father."

"We'll have to think of something," the blonde replies as she glances at the clock on the wall and does a double take as two hours seem to have gone by while retelling the day's events and discussing Regina's mother and try to imagine what she could do.

"Is it that much already?"

Of course, she can't tell her mother that she is worried that she hasn't heard from the former mayor by now. She has a pretty good inkling that everyone else still views her as the Evil Queen.

_So why don't I?_

"Do you think you could gather as many people as you can to a town meeting tomorrow afternoon?" she asks her mom, just as her phone starts ringing. She scrambles to get it out of her pocket as her heart skips a beat – something she chooses to not acknowledge – and answers quickly.

"What?" she says as her brows furrow and she scowls. "Ok, I'll be right there."

"What's happened?" Snow asks worried.

"It was Ruby. She says Pongo is acting crazy and she thinks something's happened to Archie."

"I'll come with you," the dark haired woman responds quickly and Emma can't be bothered to tell her not to as they rush out of the apartment.

* * *

_She is uncomfortable with the closeness of the blonde and the way it feels like Emma is staring through her soul, a look of sympathy and understanding on her features._

_"Miss Swan," she starts only to be silenced as a palm move to gently cup her cheek, thumb stroking softly and reassuringly back and forth._

_"It's okay," the sheriff says and the brunette is horrified to realize she's actually leaning into the touch, trying to soak it up as her eyes close briefly at the intimate gesture she hasn't experienced in so very long._

_"You're not alone," Emma continues as her other hand moves to the other woman's face as well._

_"I am," Regina whispers sadly and to her horror she feels a lone tear make its way down her cheek._

_The blonde shakes her head in the negative as her thumb move to brush the tear away. And then the former Queen is being pulled slowly into a hug. She tries to resist the embrace as Emma's arms envelop her, but the feeling is strangely comforting and nice. Against her better judgment she finds herself clutching onto the other woman, absorbing the feeling of safety and calm it evokes._

_And then she can feel hot breath against her neck._

_"I'll always be here, I'll never leave you."_

_The kiss placed just under her ear makes her shudder as her eyes close briefly again, heart fluttering excitedly in her chest._

* * *

Regina Mills gasps softly as her eyes open and she quickly looks around to make sure no one else is there.

She takes a shaky breath as she sits up in bed slowly and as she uses her hands to support herself she becomes aware of the way they're shaking.

_No, this can't be happening._

The fact that she's just dreamt about Emma Swan is horrifying enough in itself. But that she had actually let Henry's birth mom close to her and let her see her in a moment of weakness is absurd. Even if it just happened in a dream she feels strangely violated. That woman has no business being anywhere near her; whether in dreams or real life.

She jumps slightly as the doorbell starts ringing and incessant knocking can be heard.

Annoyed at whoever is at her door she hurries downstairs, stopping in front of one of her mirrors to make sure she's presentable.

She's not really surprised, but wholly irritated when she opens her door to the sheriff.

"What's the rush Miss Swan?" she asks with fake sweetness as one hand move to her hip as she leans against the door to show how annoyed she is at the rude interruption.

Emma just scowls at her.

"You need to come with me to the station. NOW!"

* * *

"Anyone want to tell me what I'm doing here?" Regina asks annoyed as soon as Emma and Charming step into the interrogation room.

"I think you know," Charming responds before the sheriff can open her mouth.

"No, I don't actually," the former Queen replies with disdain.

"Archie," the blond man states simply.

"Dr. Hopper? What about him?"

"He's dead," Charming growls at her and Emma is simultaneously relieved and taken aback at the genuine surprise and confusion plainly written on the former mayor's face.

"Archie's dead? How?"

"Don't play dumb Regina, it doesn't suit you," the blond haired man almost shouts as he slams his hands down on the table she's sitting at. The brunette doesn't even flinch.

"You killed him," Charming supplies when the seated woman makes no move to speak.

"I did what?" Regina exclaims, for a moment caught off guard.

"Stop playing, Red saw you enter his apartment mere hours ago," he says loudly, trying to appear as threatening as he can as he towers above the former Queen who barely seems to acknowledge him.

"Well then she's lying because I haven't left my house since I was with Miss Swan earlier," the brunette provides calmly, internally smirking at the frustrated look Charming adapts at her words and calm demeanor.

_Like she would ever confess anything to him. Especially when it's not even true._

As Emma sits down thoughtfully on the edge of the table, the former mayor turns to her, hoping she can make the other woman see reason.

"After everything I've done to change, to win Henry back, why would I toss it all away now?"

Charming huffs and Regina turns her head slightly to look at him in annoyance. And the sheriff can't deny that she silently agrees with the other woman's reasoning.

"And if I did and I was going to kill Archie, you'd never know it. The fact that he's dead and you caught me shows sloppiness-"

"You've been caught before Regina," Charming interjects smugly, turning to his daughter.

"Come on Emma, who do you think is lying? Ruby or her?" he prods. "She's incapable of change no matter how many times we've given her the chance." And he leans on the table again to stare at the stoic former Queen staring blankly back at him.

"Why should this time be any different?"

_Maybe because I didn't actually do it_, the brunette thinks annoyed as she stares with contempt at the man so close to her. It would be so easy to grab hold of him and snap his neck. He would be dead before he even saw it coming.

It's oh so tempting and Regina feels her fingers twitch slightly under the table, but she brushes the idea away as it will definitely not get her out of this situation.

"Because I didn't do it," she states calmly instead, staring defiantly back at the blond man. "And there's no one in this town who would like to frame me of course," she adds sarcastically. If Red did indeed see her, there are only two people she knows off that could have impersonated her to set her up. Her mother or Rumpelstiltskin.

Charming looks like he's about to rise to the bait, but Emma sends him a look that tells him to follow her outside.

"So what do we do with her now?" Snow asks when they join her in the observation room.

"Lock her up," Charming answers quickly.

"We can't lock her up because she didn't do it," the sheriff retaliates, internally cringing as her parents turn to her shocked.

"You really believe her?" the blond man states incredulously.

"I watched her when we told her Archie was dead. She didn't know."

"Emma I know that you want to believe that Regina can change for Henry-" the dark haired woman starts sadly, but the blonde doesn't want to hear it.

"I know what I saw." _And sensed._ The brunette had not been lying unless her senses were suddenly deserting her.

"Look at her in there," she continues, hoping that she can get them to see what she sees. "The old Regina would have reduced this building to ashes. That's a woman who wants to change and she just wants everyone else to see it."

She lets her statement sink in for a moment before she presses on. "I know that look. I know her."

_Not as well as I'd like, yet. Wait, what?_

"I believe her."

"With all due respect, you don't know her like we do," Charming says softly, willing his daughter to listen to them.

"Maybe that's the problem. I know in your kingdom she was the Evil Queen, but here she's Regina."

She sees Charming's skeptical look, so instead of trying to make them see reason, she reverts to using her town position. "And I'm still the sheriff and I say she's innocent until proven guilty."

"So, what do you suggest we do?" Snow requests with a look of confusion and apprehension.

Emma takes a deep breath as she looks briefly to each of her parents. "Let her go."

Charming moves to argue immediately, but she's not having it.

"We let her go," she states firmly. "And then we find the truth."

Her father contemplates her for a moment before he nods in acquiescence.

* * *

Emma can't deny that all the evidence they find does seem to point at the former mayor. But it feels too easy and she can't help but agree with Regina that if she did it they would never be able to pin it on her, just like she's never been able to with anything since she came to Storybrooke.

She can't help but feel that she needs to talk to the other woman without her parents or anyone else hanging over her with prejudice. And if she didn't feel so conflicted about the whole situation, she might have felt guilty at blowing off Snow and Charming's insistent words of Regina's apparent guilt and walking out on them.

Regina doesn't appear surprised when she opens her door to see the blonde woman. Instead she smirks.

"Miss Swan, I assume you're here to apologize?"

Emma scowls. "All the evidence points to you."

"So you're here to arrest me?" the brunette sneers as she unconsciously takes an intimidating step towards the other woman.

"I'm here to listen to your side."

Regina can't hide her surprise and skepticism at the words.

"Why?" she demands.

"Because I want to believe that you really are changing for Henry. And your surprise at Archie's death seemed sincere."

"That's because I didn't do it," the former mayor replies irritably, getting tired of saying the same thing over and over again as no one seems to want to listen to her.

"And I trust that. So please tell me, where were you when he died earlier today?" the blonde pleads, willing the other woman to trust her enough to tell her.

"I was here, sleeping," Regina admits reluctantly. She's loathe to show weakness to anyone, not least of all the woman who could try to take away her son, but the sheriff might also be the only person in this town close to unbiased. "The magic I used to protect the apartment drained me," she further offers as she frowns slightly at the admission.

"How can we prove it?"

"We can't. You'll just have to take it on my word."

And the brunette's smile is rueful as she stares at the other woman. To ask someone to trust the words of a former Evil Queen seems near impossible to her. It feels a little like karma coming back to bite her in the ass for all the times she's been deceiving others.

"If you're lying Regina, so help me you'll never see Henry again," Emma promises seriously, staring hard at the woman poised so regally before her.

It's entirely the wrong thing to say. The darkness that passes over the former mayor's features startles the sheriff and there's no mistaking the rage suddenly burning in her eyes.

"You…" Regina starts as she walks towards the blonde, forcing her to step back to maintain some distance between them.

Emma cringes at how hateful the brunette makes the one word sound and her mind is shouting at her to apologize quickly. Or run.

"You will not keep _my son_ from me," the former Queen says angrily.

And before the sheriff even knows what's happening she can feel an invisible force slamming into her, throwing her several feet backwards, and she groans painfully as she hits the ground hard.

As she scrambles into a seated position and tries to get her bearings, she sees her parents rounding the house corner and Charming shout something. Then there's movement somewhere to her right and a blue ball of light is flying towards Regina.

"NO," she shouts automatically as her heart skips a beat in panic at what could happen once it hits the former mayor. But the brunette simply reaches out her hand and the ball seems to mold itself in her palm.

The former Queen turns to Snow and Charming with a look of disdain and Emma's panic changes to fear of what Regina might do to them.

"Did you really think that would work again?" she mocks as she shoots the circle of blue light at their feet, making them jump back in fright.

And then she stalks over to where the sheriff is clumsily getting up from the ground.

"So much for fairy dust," the brunette says with glee.

"Regina-" Emma pleads at the woman she has no doubts is about to eradicate her. And there's a brief flicker of hesitancy in the other woman's eyes.

Before either of them can speak or make a move again Snow and Charming are running past the former mayor to support their daughter as they turn to stare angrily at Regina.

"You can pretend all you want, but we know who you are. And who you will always be," her father spits with venom.

For a moment the raging storm in the brunette's eyes calms as she stares in disbelief down at her hands before meeting Emma's gaze with a look of horror. And then the former Queen motions upwards with her hands and disappears in a purple cloud of smoke.


	7. Chapter 7

Rating: T.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit.

AN: Jeez, I feel like my chapters are getting longer and longer. It's hard to figure out where to split it when I always add scenes or thoughts whenever I read through it again :P Sorry for any mistakes :(

* * *

Snow, Charming, Emma and the blue fairy all stand frozen in place for long moments.

The sheriff is the first one to break the silence as she turns with a scowl to her parents.

"What have you done?" she asks incredulously as disappointment rushes through her veins.

"We did what we had to do," Charming replies stoically and the blonde woman can feel her anger flaring immediately.

"You didn't have to do anything," she replies loudly.

"She killed Archie and she would have killed you," her father tries to argue.

"Why won't you listen to me when I say she didn't kill him," she yells at them. It's frustrating that she can't prove it, as it seems to be the only way to get her parents to concede their belief in Regina's guilt.

"Because all evidence points to her and she's evil," Charming roars back angrily.

"Regina wouldn't leave behind any evidence. Someone is trying to frame her," she bellows back.

Emma sees Snow lay a hand on the man's arm and he turns slightly to look at her. When he turns back he's considerably calmer, but scowling.

"I don't know what is going on with you and Regina, but you don't want to see her for who she is."

The sheriff's heart starts beating faster. _Does he know? Is he insinuating what I think he is? Wait, it doesn't matter, there's nothing between me and Regina other than Henry._

"The problem is that I'm the only one who sees her for who she is," she replies tiredly. "She's a hurt mother trying her best to do what her son wants because she's terrified of losing him."

The blonde knows Regina is much more complicated and has a lot more issues, but she's not stupid or desperate enough to share her thoughts and ideas with her parents when they're so adamant about being against the woman.

"It's just so hard to believe with her past," Snow says softly to her daughter. "Who do we know that would do something like that just to frame her?"

Emma's first desperate thought is Gold. He's certainly capable of killing someone, but he hasn't seemed as determined on revenge lately and he appears to be trying to be better for Belle. So who then would be so desperate to see Regina disgraced, alone and broken?

"Cora!" Emma exclaims with conviction. "She could impersonate someone right? She could have done it so we would turn against Regina again." And her eyes are silently pleading with her parents to agree.

"I guess," Snow answers slowly, neglecting to mention the fact she has never not been against the former Queen.

"Right," the sheriff says as she turns and starts moving away from the others.

"Wait, where are you going?" Snow shouts after her, her voice filled with confusion and trepidation.

Emma spins around briefly to answer the dark haired woman's question before she quickly continues away from the mayoral mansion.

"To find Regina."

_And I know just who can help me._

* * *

"What can I do for you dearie?" Rumpelstiltskin asks when Emma tramples into his store.

"I need something that lets me find Regina."

"Lost her have you?" he sneers amused.

"Cut the crap, can you help me or not?"

"Why, of course," Gold replies as he rummages around behind the counter for a moment before shoving what looks like an old compass towards her.

"What does it do?"

"Show you the way of course," Rumpel replies with a grin. Emma's hand is halfway to grasping the compass when she stops in sudden thought.

"How?"

"You know how."

_Magic._

But nothing has ever been free when it comes to the man giving 'help' and he's always had some hidden motive whenever he's agreed to assist.

"And what do I have to give you for this?" she inquires skeptically.

"Nothing," he responds with a wide smile, making the blonde scowl in disbelief.

"Nothing is ever free with you," she retaliates, raising her brows pointedly, silently telling him to cut the bullshit.

"Look at it as an investment. With Cora here, we would all do well to have Regina with us."

"Right," the sheriff replies dubiously.

"I only ask that you return the compass to me once you've found her. It is a rather valuable little gadget after all."

_If it works._

As soon as Emma has left Rumpelstiltskin's shop, she moves all her attention to the worn and old, but normal looking compass in her hands. It's hard to believe that it will lead her to the former Queen.

_Okay, Magic. I can do that._

She snorts at herself, feeling ridiculous for even attempting to use something she's thought her whole life couldn't exist.

_Just focus._

She stares hard at the object, willing it to do something. Nothing happens.

"Come on," she mumbles as she thinks with all her might of what she needs the compass to do.

_I need to find Regina, to make sure she's alright. Take me to Regina so I can apologize._

She almost drops the object as its arrow starts spinning rapidly before it stops and points to her left. Turning her body left, she notices that the arrow shifts to now point forward.

_Okay, here goes._

Quickly she starts walking in the direction the compass shows.

* * *

Regina Mills looks around at the trees surrounding her. The sun is low in the sky and she can't help herself from thinking that Henry's bus should arrive from school soon. The thought makes her rage roar to life again.

It's not fair. She has done everything Henry has asked of her; getting Snow and Emma back – although she had been on the verge of killing them at an early point – not using magic, deflecting everyone's hostility with a smile and letting her son stay with Charming when her own instinct had told her to force him to remain with her.

And now someone – most likely her mother – is trying to take away everything she's fought for. She can't help the shudder that passes through her body at the thought of Cora.

She had done everything right and still people jumped to the worst conclusions whenever something bad happened.

_What more could they want from me?_

She can feel her blood boiling and then she becomes aware of the foreign magic still inside of her. It's not much left, but it's still there. And since she's already failed on the account of not using magic and Henry will probably never want anything more to do with her when Snow or Emma tell him she has murdered Archie, she sees no point in not getting it all out of her system.

So she closes her eyes and lets the power from the curse simmer freely through her. And then it's pushing outwards all around her and the trees around her sound like they're being smashed to pieces. She smiles as all traces of the foreign magic disappear and she feels in full control of herself again.

Only years of practice keeps any sound from escaping her mouth when she opens her eyes. It's like the whole area around her has been blasted away at least ten feet, the trees closest to her reduced to a fine powder on the ground while the rest has been hurled against the trees out of reach from the blast. It looks not unlike what it would if a bomb went off.

_I guess now I know what would have happened if Emma weren't with me._

The thought of the blonde brings a scowl to her face. How she despises that infuriating, lying bitch. If she thinks for even a second that she can keep Regina away from her son, she'll have another thing coming.

Somewhere a twig breaks and the brunette spins around to figure out where it came from and who it can be. It's hard to see much however as dusk seems to be creeping ever closer and she wants to think it's just a curious animal. But now that magic and her mother are back she's on constant alert, choosing to expect the worst so she can't be caught off guard.

There's rustling not far from the clearing now and she readies herself for a possible attack as she catches movement behind a fallen tree.

And then Emma stumbles forward, almost falling over as she fumbles to not lose some object held in her hands.

"Regina," the sheriff says relieved when she sees the woman who's staring at her in surprise. As she moves toward the brunette, she looks around them and gapes.

"What happened?" she asks perplexed as it looks like there's been an explosion where they're standing.

"Miss Swan-" Regina starts bewildered, but then she seems to remember something and before the blonde can so much as utter a cry in alarm she's pushed back by the same force as earlier by the mansion. This time she doesn't hit the ground though, but a tree and she can feel the air being knocked out of her as she crumbles to the ground.

She gasps for air as tears gather in her eyes and she pushes herself to all four.

"Okay, that hurt," she croaks and looks up to see the former mayor regarding her curiously, as if waiting to see what Emma will do.

"Can you please stop throwing me around and talk instead?" the sheriff wheezes as she stands on slightly wobbly legs and faces the other woman.

"Why should I? You don't want to listen to what I have to say and I'm not going to stand by while you try to take my son from me," Regina snarls as she raises her hand again.

"Wait, I want to apologize," the blonde shouts as fast as she can while she braces herself for another impact.

It never comes as the brunette's hand lower slowly while she stares confused at the other woman. "For what?" she asks suspiciously.

"For doubting you, for saying what I did about Henry," the sheriff answers quickly, looking for any sign that might warn her if the former mayor will attack her again.

Regina contemplates her for long moments and the blonde has to fight the urge to squirm.

"Why should I believe you?"

"Because you want to change. For Henry. And to do that you'll have to start trusting someone. And I'm the only one in town who don't have any history with you from fairy tale land so I don't judge."

The brunette raises her brows as she considers the other woman. She can't deny the truth in the sheriff's words, but it's hard to put your trust in someone who has the means – however unlikely she is to manage it – to take away the only thing she's cared about for the last 10 and a half years.

"How did you find me anyway?" she requests to buy herself some time.

"Oh," Emma exclaims as she starts looking at the ground around her and after a moment moves to pick up a round object. "I used this," she says as she moves to stand opposite the former Queen and shows her.

"A compass," Regina says unimpressed.

"A _magic _compass," the blonde supplies with a crooked smile. "I used it to find you."

"You can use magic?" the former Queen asks surprised before she answers her own question. "The Savior, of course."

Emma briefly entertains the thought that the name doesn't sound half bad coming from the other woman's full lips.

"I hope you've been warned Miss Swan," Regina says briskly and the sheriff furrow her brows quizzically.

"Of what?"

"That all magic comes with a price."

"Yeah well, it's a price I'm willing to pay. Now will you please come back with me? It's getting late, Henry will worry."

For a brief moment Emma goes rigid as she fears the former mayor will throw another fit at her mention of their son, but this time a look of sadness washes over her face instead of rage.

"He'll only be worried about you," she states dejectedly before masking her features to project indifference.

"He'll be worried about both of us," the blonde says firmly, daring the other woman to deny it. She remains uncharacteristically quiet.

"I would never take him away from you, Regina," Emma adds after a moment of silence. She feels it's important to try to make sure the other woman knows she's not going to be a threat.

"We'll see," the brunette acknowledges as she looks the other woman over. "Let's go then," she adds briskly, like it's the sheriff's fault they're still standing there and she has better places to be.

"Can't you just teleport us back or something?" Emma groans, not wanting to walk the long way back to town. Leaving her car at Regina's house had not been her smartest move and her feet are tired. Not to mention her body feels like it's been put through the wringer.

"Absolutely not! Since you're not here to arrest me for a murder I did not commit or make sure I stay away from my son, I'm back on the no magic promise."

And as they slowly start to make their way back through the forest, Regina is unable to hide her amusement at the sheriff's incessant grumbling and complaints.

* * *

"Where have you been?" Henry asks as he throws himself at Emma and hugs her tight, the woman somewhat reluctantly returning it as she's aware of the brunette right behind her.

"I've been out with your mom," she answers as she moves aside slightly so he can see the former mayor behind her. She doesn't like the apprehension and insecurity she sees in the other woman, like she's afraid Henry will reject her. It saddens her to see the other woman so reduced. She much prefers the confident version.

For a moment it looks like the boy is contemplating whether he should hug Regina or not, so the blonde is relieved when he chooses to walk over and hug the other woman, the former Queens arms wrapping him up tightly as she soaks in the gesture.

"What were you doing? Why didn't you bring me?" he asks them once he manages to squirm out of his mother's grasp.

"We were just talking. Sorry, we'll bring you next time," Emma assures him, sharing a look with the brunette that promises she won't tell their son anything.

"We just came to say goodnight," the former mayor supplies with a soft smile and for a moment the sheriff stares transfixed at how pretty the other woman looks when her smile is actually genuine. She really should smile more often.

Suddenly Emma remembers what had started this whole chaos in the first place and a look of sadness washes over her features.

"Actually, we have some bad news to tell you."

Henry looks worriedly from one mom to the other, not sure he wants to know what it is.

"It's about Archie," the brunette starts, obviously understanding what the other woman is referring to and crouching down so she's at eye level with her son.

"What about him?" the boy asks as he looks to the blonde.

"He's dead," the sheriff croaks getting a brief look of dismay from the other woman at how tactless she's being.

"What? Is it true?" he asks the former mayor, his eyes pleading with her to tell him it's not.

"I'm really sorry Henry," she replies as she reaches out for him, but he jumps away from her touch.

"How?" he demands at them both as his eyes fill with tears.

"We don't know," Emma supplies as Regina stands reluctantly. Before they can say anything else Henry is turning and running from them, disappearing upstairs. The blonde notices how the other woman fights her obvious urge to follow after their son so she can comfort him.

"He needs time," the blonde explains and for a moment it looks like the other woman is about to go on a tirade. But the sheriff already knows what the former Queen is gonna say so she gives her a sheepish look that tells the other woman she knows she shouldn't have said it. She imagines she can hear the other woman's anger as she tells her she knows her own son.

"Give me a sec to talk to Snow."

Regina is half relieved, half disappointed that Snow and Charming seem to have made themselves scarce during her entire encounter with her son.

_Oh well, she'll have to rub it in their faces that she's still around some other time._

* * *

The former mayor had not been delighted when the other woman had told her Snow and Charming would be looking after Henry, but had reluctantly agreed that they couldn't force the boy to talk to them and that they had to give him some time to digest the sad news.

The silence as they walk from Snow's apartment to the mayoral mansion is tense and uncomfortable, neither woman really knowing what to say to fill the void between them and both worrying about their son.

So they're both relieved when they reach the blondes yellow bug parked not long from Regina's house.

"See you tomorrow?" Emma asks uncertain.

"Yes, I believe you will," the brunette replies tensely.

They stare at each other awkwardly for long moments before the sheriff turns to get into her car.

"Miss Swan?"

"Yes?" Emma replies quickly, whirling back around as her heart picks up in speed.

"I…" the former mayor starts before she catches herself. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," the blonde replies, trying her best to hide her disappointment with a smile and then climbing into her car.

On the way to her rented room she tries hard to figure out what exactly she had been expecting Regina to ask since she feels so let down.

_This has to be the longest two days of my life,_ she thinks as she lets herself fall into bed with a sigh and falls asleep within minutes.


	8. Chapter 8

Rating: T.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: So sorry for any mistakes in this. I go crazy reading through it again and again tot ry and find any mistakes so eventually I just say 'to hell with it' and post it :P Thank you for the reviews :)

* * *

"Is this going to become a regular occurrence Miss Swan?" Regina asks with a wry smile when she opens her door to see the blonde leaning against one of the pillars.

"Maybe," the blonde replies with a grin as she pushes herself away from the column with a groan. Her body is aching in a not pleasurable way since being thrown about by the brunette yesterday.

"We're gonna hold a town meeting at two to tell people about Cora."

"Is that so?" If the brunette is surprised she doesn't show it.

"Yes, are you coming?"

"No, I don't think I will."

The former Queen doesn't give any reason as to why because she's loathe to admit that she actually kind of fears how people will respond to it. She imagines she'll either get accusatory looks like it's all her fault or she'll see pity in their eyes because they'll think it's the reason she is who she is. She wants neither, finding both to be highly inappropriate and infuriating.

"Eh, okay. You don't happen to have a picture of her so we can show people what she looks like? Kinda pointless to warn someone if they don't know what to look for."

"We didn't have the technology in fairy tale land to take pictures," the brunette replies in a huff and the sheriff knows she's being scolded for her lack of figuring out the obvious.

"I do have a painting of her however. Come inside and I'll get it."

Emma groans in relief as her body sinks into the couch, her head automatically lulling backwards against its back.

"Is something the matter Miss Swan?" Regina asks with a knowing smirk as she reappears with a large portrait.

"Just some bruises, nothing that won't be gone in a few days," she replies quickly as she stares defiantly at the amused woman. To think she would get an apology from the former Queen feels ridiculous and overly optimistic. So instead she looks at the unmistakable image of a regally poised Cora in a flowing, purple dress. Even painted the woman looks ominous and manipulating.

With a rather impressive force of will the sheriff forces her aching body to move so she's standing in front of the painting. Slowly, trying not to grimace at her body's protests, she pulls out her phone so she can take a picture of the painting so she can print copies of it to distribute later.

"So…I'm picking up Henry after school," Emma states awkwardly once she's done.

"So what?" the brunette responds coldly, letting the other woman know she's very close to overstepping that invisible line she can never seem to figure out.

"I was thinking maybe the tree of us could have dinner together?"

"I don't want your pity or scraps of time with my son under your supervision," Regina snarls angrily.

"It's not that. I just thought it would be nice for our son to spend time with both his mom's. He wants that," the blonde replies quickly, knowing she has to diffuse the other woman's rapidly growing rage.

"He does?"

"Of course he does." It's only half a lie really. Okay, so Henry hasn't told her that explicitly, but he's not even 11 yet so no matter how stubborn he appears, he still needs his mom's whether he wants to admit it or not.

"Fine, but we're having dinner here," the brunette states after a moment.

Emma gives the other woman a questioning look.

"I don't trust other people with my food these days," the former Queen explains calmly and she can't really hold the amused grin from the sheriff against her as the other woman acknowledges her statement and nods in consent.

"I can help with the pains if you want?" Regina suggests slowly, pleased that she's gotten her way and trying in her own unique way to show her appreciation.

"That would be amazing," the blonde sighs in relief. It quickly turns to confusion as the other woman disappears into the kitchen for a moment before returning and showing her a pill.

"What's that?"

"Vicodin of course," the brunette responds with a grin. "Why Miss Swan, were you expecting something else?" she asks knowingly. Emma doesn't even try to mask her scowl at the mockery.

She quickly grabs the offered pill and stalks out of the living room and the house, offended and feeling silly that she thought Regina would mend it with magic. In her mind she can see the other woman still in her living room and laughing with glee.

* * *

When Emma and Henry show up at the mayoral mansion close to 4.30, the blonde is feeling remarkably drained and unhappy. The town meeting had not been a very smooth or quiet affair.

First, there was the obvious tension between her parents and herself. They had tried to act like everything was fine, but she had told them pointedly that she was not and would never be okay with how they had handled the whole Regina thing after Archie's murder. Snow had looked at her sadly while Charming had told her everything still pointed to the former Queen as the culprit. To avoid starting a new argument she had walked away quickly.

Soon after the meeting had started, it also became clear how much chaos the town and its people were in after the curse broke and Regina was no longer mayor – not that anyone admitted that part.

Apparently almost everyone who had been under the curse was ignoring the people they had been in Storybrooke and was acting like their original selves – something Emma did not find to be for the better, but couldn't say aloud – and their loudly proclaimed complaints and accusations made a part of her bounty hunter persona want to knock them out cold so they would shut up and listen.

The beginning of the meeting had been calm enough; everyone being informed of Archie's death and that the funeral would be the next afternoon to great sadness and – thankfully – silence from the crowd. Emma had no pretenses that a fair few were internally thinking that Regina or Gold had done it, but as long as they didn't announce it out loud she was more than relieved, not wanting to have to defend the former mayor to the whole town when she couldn't even get her own parents to believe her.

Announcing that Regina's mother Cora had managed to find her way to Storybrooke and that she was even more dangerous than her daughter had not gone down quietly. Some had looked panicked, other like they didn't understand what that meant, but most had started shouting about protections, demanding to know why Regina wasn't at the meeting herself and that it was her task to take care of the woman.

Eventually, she'd had to shout at the top of her lungs for everyone to 'shut the fuck up' to get most of the residents to settle somewhat and let her talk. She had explained – to vast uproar and dismay – that they had to contact her if they spotted Cora anywhere and that they, meaning the royal family and Regina, was working as fast as they could to figure out how they could detain Cora and ensure everyone's safety.

Things had seemed to calm down somewhat after the sheriff's reassurance, and she had foolishly thought the worst of it was over. Then Leroy had asked when they were all going home and a whole new round of chaos had begun. Some people, the dwarves in particular, wanted to go back to the Enchanted Forest and demanded that they force Regina to make it happen since it was her fault they was stuck in Storybrooke in the first place. Others seemed more reluctant or unsure of what they preferred.

In the end, she had been thrilled to see what time it was; using the excuse of having to pick up her son to leave Snow and Charming to try to appease the townspeople.

The meeting had left her a whole lot more respectful of Henry's other mom, marveling at how she could keep the people calm and deal with every one of them all the time. It had to be exhausting if her own, brief experience was anything to go by.

As they wait for Regina to open the door, the blonde finds herself almost praying that the other woman will see how tired she is and play nice.

She's secretly proud and a little relieved when the brunette opens the door and Henry throws himself briefly against the woman in happy greeting before he rushes inside and up the stairs – probably to his room and all the toys he's been without for some time.

"Hey," Emma says with a sheepish smile as she puts her hands inside her pockets self-consciously.

"Of all the times you've been at my door, the one time you're actually invited you choose to learn some manners?" the former Queen quips with a smirk as she steps aside to let the other woman in.

The blonde scowls playfully as she chucks off her boots and slides out of her jacket, watching Regina out of the corner of her eye as she moves to pick up their son's carelessly discarded backpack.

"How did the town meeting go?" the former mayor asks conversationally and she has to hide her smile at the frustrated groan she gets as an answer.

"That bad?"

"You have no idea," Emma says with a sigh before realizing that the other woman probably does.

"I guess a drink is in order then?" the other woman replies as she moves to her beloved cider and pours two glasses. The blonde takes the offered glass with gratitude and sips it slowly, savoring the rich taste.

"I'll get started on dinner. You can join Henry if you want," Regina says and without waiting for an answer, moves toward the kitchen.

The sheriff remains still as she contemplates what to do next. On one side, it would be easy and fun to play around with Henry and wait for dinner to make itself. But the whole point of eating here is to give Regina and Henry some time together.

When Emma enters the kitchen with Henry in tow and asks how they can help, the brunette can't fully hide her surprise. It only takes her a moment to compose herself however, and then she's giving them the task of making the salad to go with the lasagna.

She regrets her decision as soon as she's set the dinner in the oven and turns around to find the two throwing pieces of cheese at each other, trying - and obviously failing - to hit their open mouths.

"Please try to act according to your age," she scolds them as something akin to jealousy courses through her at the easy and playful banter between birth mother and son.

_Would Henry have been happier with her if she had done things like this with him?_

She's just about to join them at the counter when something hits her face and the kitchen goes deadly quiet; both Henry and Emma staring wide eyed at the brunette.

"I'm _so_ sorry," the sheriff squeaks as she scrambles to pick up the cheese, waiting for the tirade sure to come from the former Queen.

Regina just looks at her unimpressed before settling herself next to Henry, fighting the urge to run her fingers through his hair and content to make sure he doesn't cut himself on the knife.

* * *

"Oh my God, that was _amazing,_" Emma moans as the former mayor starts clearing off the table with a satisfied smirk, Henry proclaiming his agreement immediately.

The brunette's initial instinct is to tell her son he should come back home so he could enjoy good, healthy food all the time. But it could either start an argument or even worse her son could reject her. She's never been good at handling that from anyone and it is perhaps – secretly of course – her biggest fear.

"We can play some games if you want?" she offers to her son who grins at her suggestion and announces that he'll go board game hunting as he skips happily from the dinner table.

Regina swiftly moves to the sink and deposits the plates on the kitchen counter. She starts when a hand brushes softly against her shoulder as the blonde sets the bowl with the remaining salad on the counter and gives the other woman a shy smile.

"Thank you," the sheriff says warmly and the former Queen can't help but feel the woman is talking about more than just her delicious dinner.

"You're welcome. But really Miss Swan, it was just dinner."

She's giving Emma an easy out by playing it off like it's nothing, like she doesn't know that the words have a deeper meaning. She's surprised when the other woman doesn't seem to want to take her up on her offer though.

_She must have really enjoyed that lasagna, _the former mayor muses with an internal smirk.

"Henry really needs this," the blonde says before her brows furrow slightly, as if she's debating with herself whether to continue or not.

"_I_ really need this," she adds softly and Regina notices the hesitancy in the other woman's voice, as if she's uncomfortable with the confession.

This is where she would normally mock the other woman; toss a snarky remark at her and send an intimidating smile her way. But the sheriff standing beside her - with her hand still on the brunette's shoulder as if she's forgotten it's still there – seems sincere and fragile, tired and a little lost, and she just can't get herself to ruin the tentative peace that has settled in her house for the evening. She hates to admit it, but she likes having the company of his son and his birth mother. She's been feeling even more lonely than usual without Henry running around and the blonde there to bicker with.

"I do to," she hears herself say instead and they both appear a little surprised by her answer.

Emma's hand shift slightly against the brunette's shoulder and she suddenly seems to remember where it's still positioned. The sheriff looks at it in wonder for a moment before green eyes pierce brown with a look of apprehension and sudden determination that Regina finds alarming. The former Queen finds herself unable to tear her gaze away from those heated orbs though as she marvels at the way they seem to shine as they slowly inch closer to her own.

A sudden panic rushes through her as she realizes the other woman is shifting closer to her and she becomes vaguely aware of the hand previously on her shoulder gliding towards her neck. She wants to squirm away, shrug the other woman off, but her body doesn't comply with her mind. She opens her mouth to tell the blonde to stop, but no words come out. Her heart is thrumming wildly as her eyes move down to take in the pink lips so very close to her now. She wonders how they would feel against her own. She imagines they would be plush and warm and deliciously demanding.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she registers a sound, like footsteps, coming closer. It takes her brain a second to process what it means.

_Henry. _

The two women jump apart just as their son rushes into the kitchen in a blur of excitement, telling them to hurry up and that he's gotten all his favorites out. He stops when he sees the look of embarrassment and panic on his moms faces.

"What's going on?" he asks with a scowl, hoping they don't have any more bad news for him.

Regina is the first to recover enough to answer him.

"Nothing. Miss Swan almost dropped the salad bowl, but I managed to save it," she lies with ease as she gives her son an exasperated sigh at the sheriff's apparent clumsiness that makes him grin in amusement.

"You ready to show us how to win?" the former mayor continues as she lets her hand brush affectionately over his hair. Henry just grins even wider as he hurries back into the living room, the weird scene in the kitchen only moments before forgotten in his enthusiasm.


	9. Chapter 9

Rating: T.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: I'm not sure if I'm satisfied with this chapter. Life is giving me a hard time at the moment and it seems near impossible to form my ideas and images into words. I hope it'll all get better very soon.

* * *

Emma closes the door to the guest room with something akin to relief. In truth, she does not really want to sleep here. Her instincts are telling her to leave, to get far away from the woman only a few doors down from her own so she can think and try to process what the hell is going on with her.

_She almost kissed Regina!_

For the first time since Henry showed up at her apartment and brought her to Storybrooke, she feels almost resentment towards the kid. He had made her promise to stay so now she was forced to keep her promise, which meant she couldn't find somewhere secluded to vent and try to make sense of all her conflicted and confused emotions.

Instead she's stuck in the mayoral mansion reliving the earlier evening.

When they started playing the games Henry had found after dinner, Emma was surprised to notice that the other woman would appear to make small mistakes that caused their son to win most of the games. She expected Regina to be with games as she was with everything else; relentless and unyielding. But after the blonde 'stole' a victory from henry, the former Queen sent her a warning glare when the kid was resetting the board that clearly told the other woman that she was not to make a habit of it.

A surge of sudden affection towards the brunette hit Emma as she guessed it was usual for Henry's other mom to let him win most of the time. She noted that Regina was always careful to not make it obvious that she was letting the boy defeat her, occasionally beating him only to reassure him that he almost had her and would no doubt manage next time.

It was an excellent way of keeping Henry's spirits up and make sure he didn't get bored with playing. The thought had never even occurred to her through her own competitive streak and it made her stomach clench uncomfortably as the not unfamiliar feeling of failure and short-comings as a mother distracted her and made her feel insecure. She tried to push it away and focus on her son's energy and happiness instead as they continued to play.

When Henry started yawning, Emma was surprised to see that hours had flown by.

Regina had quickly suggested that Henry stay in the mansion in his room and after the boy made his mom agree to Emma staying as well, he had looked with those big, round, imploring eyes of his at her and made her promise to stay so they could all have breakfast together in the morning before school and work.

It was a little tense when they went to put Henry to bed, Regina obviously finding it hard to leave her son's side, but trying to not appear desperate and clingy. When they finally closed his door, they stood awkwardly in the hallway for long moments before Regina cleared her throat and suggested they get to bed too if they were to get up early for breakfast before getting Henry to school.

She had quickly agreed and soon after found herself standing in the same guest room she had been ushered into almost 3 days ago when she was drunk and exhausted.

She's decidedly not drunk now, but still feels exhausted, if even for slightly different reasons than last time.

_She almost kissed her son's other mom._

A woman that, even after all her time in Storybrooke, the blonde feels is still a mystery to her.

There is never a day that goes by without her learning something new about the former mayor and she can't deny that the woman fascinates her. She's intrigued and drawn towards the brunette, but Regina seems impossible to figure out or pin down.

In many ways, she feels she can relate to the way the former Queen can so quickly become defensive and the way she always tries to appear detached and careless.

But she also knows from experience that it's just fear and mistrust formed from bad memories in the past.

If nothing else, she can't back down now because it will give Regina leverage against her. And she has no doubt that the other woman would pounce on the opportunity to make sure Emma backs away if the sheriff shows any weakness or regret of what almost happened earlier.

Not surprisingly, it takes a lot of time for the sheriff to fall asleep that night.

* * *

When Henry pounces on her the next morning Emma feels like a zombie, barely managing to keep her eyes open and stumbling into the kitchen after throwing on her clothes haphazardly.

She hums in approval and relief when she's handed a steaming mug of coffee and gets directed to the dining room, scowling at Henry when he laughs at her clumsiness and exhaustion before they happily tuck in the big, healthy and delicious breakfast provided by the former mayor.

And she can't deny that she's feeling remarkably calm and chipper when she and their son are ushered out the door by a smirking Regina; each with a to-go cup of hot chocolate and the threat that they better make it to school on time.

When she gets to the sheriff station after dropping off a delighted Henry at school, the blonde feels like the world has decided to give her a break for once since they got back from fairy tale land. There are no phone calls and no emergencies, allowing the sheriff to relax and fiddle with paperwork that she'd normally find boring, but is happy to do today as it gives her time to relax and soak in the feeling of contentment she's currently enjoying.

Before she knows it lunch time has arrived and in her current state of peace her brain has the brilliant idea that she should probably go and say thank you to Regina for last night and this morning, letting her know how much she and Henry appreciated it.

With a grin and an almost skip in her steps, she moves to the door only to rear back in surprise at the disheveled person standing there.

"Archie?!" she exclaims shocked.

* * *

Regina Mills is not having the best of days, something that annoys her immensely because she should be delighted that her son spent the night and that he seemed so happy before he left for school.

But because of a certain blonde woman she'd had trouble sleeping last night as she tried to figure out what to do with the woman and what had almost occurred in the kitchen before their son had interrupted.

She had tried for hours to ponder how she felt about the situation, if she was indeed attracted to her son's birth mother and what it would mean if she let something develop between them. And then she'd tried to figure out if she wanted to try a relationship with the sheriff or if it was simply a way for her to pass time and have some fun.

She couldn't seem to make up her mind of what she felt and wanted. It had left her frustrated and ruined most of her sleep, but when she got up to prepare breakfast for her guests she was still no closer to a reasonable decision.

And now she is sitting in the living room with a glass of cider that she has yet to drink, staring blankly at the opposite wall and thinking of what she should do about one Emma Swan.

She's brought out of her confused thoughts by the shrill ringing of her bell and she huffs in annoyance as she stands up, wondering who would be stupid enough to interrupt her when she muses over the future and what her course of action should be.

"Archie's alive!" Emma bursts out as soon as the brunette opens her door.

"What?" Regina asks surprised, for once not really caring that the sheriff walks inside without an invitation.

"He's alive! He showed up at the station. Cora and Hook took him," the blonde continues excitedly.

"You seem awfully happy. I didn't know you and Archie were so close," the former mayor sneers, a little surprised when Emma doesn't seem to notice the warning in her tone.

"We're not. But this means you're innocent."

"I already knew that Miss Swan," Regina replies irritated, glaring at the woman whose smile slowly fades to one of uncertainty.

"But now everyone will know."

"And what difference does that make? Are they going to believe me next time something bad happens? Of course not. I'm the Evil Queen remember," the brunette says fiercely, battling with her own emotions to keep her voice from rising too much.

She's getting tired of trying to redeem herself to a town where no one wants her to succeed. And when Emma opens her mouth to no doubt deny that she's evil, she tells the sheriff as much.

"Henry wants you to succeed," the blonde counters quickly, walking towards the other woman.

"_I _want you to succeed."

And Regina has to fight the urge to take a step back when the other woman is suddenly standing closer than she finds strictly comfortable.

"You haven't really ben _evil _for a long time," Emma starts as she lets her fingers graze over a wrist and move slowly up an arm. "Just…fiercely protective of the things you care about," she continues as she watches with fascination at the goosebumps she can feel forming on the other woman's arm as she moves slowly upwards to a shoulder. Her eyes are drawn to full red lips parting slightly to release a breath before their gazes lock together and the air between them becomes charged and tense.

"Emma," the brunette rasps, her voice breaking slightly on the word and the sheriff isn't sure if her name is said as a plea or a warning. Either way she's already made up her mind. She's going to kiss Regina.

There's no denying that there's something between them and she can't think of a single reason good enough to be a coward and back out. She knows the other woman feels something towards her as well or they wouldn't have all these little charged moments between them. It takes two to tango or whatever the hell the saying is.

Before either of them can get cold feet, she tangles her fingers in dark tresses at the base of Regina's neck and leans forward.

_It's really happening. In a second I'll be kissing her._

At what has to be the last possible nanosecond, the brunette turns her head slightly to the side so Emma's lips land a little to the side, not fully against her lips.

With sudden dread, the sheriff pulls back slightly to look at the other woman as her heart seems to drop into her stomach. Had she misjudged and totally just made an ass of herself?

"I can't," Regina tries to explain at the hurt, confused and insecure look she gets from the other woman.

"Why?"

"Cora!" the former Queen states gravely, like it should explain everything.

"What does she have to do with _us_?" Emma asks a little more crude than intended, trying hard not to let her hurt cloud her judgment and get the other woman to clarify.

"Everything!" Regina exclaims impatiently. "Everyone or everything I've ever cared for she has taken from me. As long as she's here in Storybrooke I can't risk her finding out anything more than she already does. It's hard enough to try to keep Henry safe."

She doesn't mean to tell the blonde quite so much, but she's desperate for the other woman to understand so she doesn't make one of the last people to stand up for her hate her as well.

"I can look after myself. She already tried to take my heart and that didn't work out so well," Emma responds with a sheepish smile, trying her best to lighten the mood, but the brunette only scowls at her.

"There are other ways to kill you."

"Yeah well, I don't think she'll want me any more or less dead than she already does, regardless if I'm kissing you or not," she replies with a grin. The former Queen doesn't smile back.

"I can't take that chance."

Emma can't deny that she's disappointed and a little bit hurt at the rejection. But she can understand the brunette's reluctance and fear at the thought of what her mother might do. Cora is a woman to be cautious about. Besides, it's kinda cute that Regina wants to protect her, even if it unfortunately means there's not going to be any kissing for a while.

Before the former mayor can react, the sheriff cups the other woman's face firmly and moves so their noses touch and their breaths mingle, lips staying just shy of actually touching each other.

"Then we better get rid of her quickly. Because I'm not going to wait around forever."

And with a smirk she turns and stalks out the door, leaving a dazed and slightly gaping Regina staring after her.


	10. Chapter 10

Rating: Light M. If two women together disturbs you don't read (if it does you shouldn't be reading since this is SwanQueen :P)

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and make no profit from them.

AN: Wow, thank you for all the positive reviews. It looks like the worst is over and my writing is back ;) And I'm so excited to have over 200 followers for this story so I'm posting this as a sort of celebration of that ;)

* * *

"This is ridiculous," Regina exclaims to the empty room as she snaps her book shut and nearly throws it away in frustration.

It's been 4 and a half days since she turned Emma Swan down and she's scarcely seen the woman since, something her body and mind apparently aren't happy with.

They haven't really been avoiding each other per se, but the sheriff has been busy the last days with a town that's clearly in chaos.

She doesn't see the blonde woman until two days after she turned her away when she gets a call from Doctor Whale about a man crossing the border from the outside. She rushes to the hospital and listens to everyone worrying about what the man has seen and what he might remember or do.

She stays in the background when Rumpelstiltskin refuses to help them, not at all surprised at his denial and she listens in silence as they move to a private room to argue over whether to try and save the man or let him die. She's not at all bewildered when Grumpy seems to be the only one in favor of letting him bleed to death.

Obviously, that notion is quickly shot down and it looks like everyone is about to leave when Snow abruptly turns towards her as if realizing she is there for the first time.

"If he survives, can you make him forget what he saw?"

All eyes suddenly turn to focus on her as she contemplates the woman in front of her.

"Why should I?" she says after a moment of silence.

"You heard what Mr. Gold said," Charming interjects. "You don't want him to bring people from the outside here and figure out magic is real. You created this town after all."

"Why would I care, I have magic that can protect me just fine," she replies with a smirk, delighted when the man makes to move closer to her to appear intimidating only to be grabbed by his daughter and forced back.

"Stop this. All of you," Emma says briskly as she gives them all a hard stare, ending with the former Queen whose smirk quickly fades. Instead Regina crosses her arms defiantly as she stares back into green eyes fiercely connected with her own.

If they had been alone in the room they'd be having a heated argument right about now, but on account of invading eyes and ears, they're trying to have a silent conversation instead. The brunette has no doubt that the sheriff knows why she's so reluctant to lend Emma's parents a helping hand.

She's still angry about their accusations regarding Archie's death that - naturally - turns out to be false. And Snow and Charming hasn't even had the audacity to admit they were wrong and give her a proper apology. Not that she'd actually let them apologize anyway. She's not interested in accepting their regret before they admit they're not always right – especially Charming with his brash conclusions and ever present hostility towards her.

Emma's eyes change so they're instead pleading for her to help and the brunette has to look away when she feels a twitch of guilt in her chest – which is ridiculous because she shouldn't even care – and she starts towards the door with determination.

"Regina -" both Snow and Emma state in unison, their voices filled with disbelief.

The former mayor spins around quickly, her anger flaring at how pitiful they all are; always needing her help to fix every little bad thing that happens.

"I will help you when I get an apology from your family for the unkind and hostile way you've been treating me since I got you back through that well," she states firmly as she glares at Snow.

"And when I get it you better make damn sure I believe you really mean it," Regina sneers before she turns on her heel and sashays away from the group of people, leaving behind a scowling Emma, an angry Charming, a dejected Snow and a confused Ruby and Leroy.

The second time she sees the blonde is when she shows up a day later as Snow and Charming's attempted peace maker. It almost works for a moment too when Regina's eyes fall to tantalizingly revealed skin and a cleavage that's more on display than is usual.

She's fully content to enjoy the view until Emma mentions her parents and completely ruins her mood.

"I hope your esteemed parents haven't resorted to whoring you away for them to get what they need just because they're incapable of admitting they were wrong," she states coldly to hide her disappointment.

Emma scowls at her and leaves quickly, slamming the door hard on her way out and leaving a frustrated brunette to wish she hadn't let her emotions get the better of her so she could have found something less offending to say.

She tried to invite Henry and Emma over for dinner earlier this evening to show the other woman that she regrets her harsh words, but the sheriff has turned her down promptly, obviously still feeling grumpy and offended at their latest interaction.

The only good thing that has come from this whole mess is that Henry has informed her he might wish to come home to his room again soon.

She's proud that she hasn't pressured him to come home immediately like her initial instincts want her to do. She's beginning to realize that if she wishes her son to _want_ to be with her, she's going to have to give him time and support, not force his hand in anything like she can do with people who are just a means to an end. She can't threaten him like she does others when she actually cares about what he thinks and doesn't want him to be disappointed in her.

It takes a lot of energy to always worry about how her son might perceive the things she says or does and she can't fathom how people can care about others if this is what it entails. It has made Regina realize that even if all the people she cursed to Storybrooke were to give her a chance to redeem herself, she probably wouldn't take it. There is no way she'd survive trying to please them all when she can barely manage to keep her son satisfied.

With a healthy dose of self-pity that she rarely allows herself to feel, the former Queen turns off the bedside light and wraps her duvet tightly around herself as she lets the feeling of hopelessness and failure swirl freely inside her until she eventually falls asleep.

* * *

_"Don't stop," Regina pants between sloppy kisses as the blonde's fingers swirl teasingly against her wetness, but refrains from going where she really needs them._

_"Tell me what I want to hear," Emma demands as she lets her teeth sink into the muscle where shoulder meets neck, delighted at the moan the other woman releases and the way her hips buck upwards to try and get her fingers where the brunette needs them the most._

_"Emma," the former Queen pleads, begging the other woman to have mercy on her._

_"Tell me!"_

_Regina bites her bottom lip in frustration when she realizes the blonde isn't going to give her any reprieve unless she gives her what she wants._

_"That's mine," Emma growls as she forces her tongue between the other woman's teeth and takes the lip between her own lips, sucking on it before biting down gently while wriggling her fingers slightly to remind the brunette of what she has yet to give the woman on top of her._

_With a groan of defeat Regina lets the words tumble from her lips._

_"I need you. Please make me come."_

_She's rewarded immediately as two fingers fill her while a thumb starts stroking against her sensitive nub, Emma humming her approval as she moves to take a straining nipple into her mouth and forces a strangled cry of pleasure from the brunette's vocal chords._

* * *

With a frustrated groan Regina is brought back to the conscious world, rapidly becoming aware of the wetness between her legs and the incessant thumping of her heart in other places than her chest.

She is not okay with her body's joyful reaction to her dream. What she had dreamt was not how it was supposed to go down. She did not let others dominate her or put her in such a vulnerable position. There is nothing arousing about being submissive and weak.

Still, she can't deny that she is feeling horny and she might as well imagine Emma in her bed if it will give her body some relieve. It's not like the other woman would ever know since the brunette can't imagine her mother disappearing anytime soon.

The former Queen takes a deep breath and releases it slowly while she closes her eyes and lets her left hand move to palm her breast while her right glides softly down her stomach before she spreads her legs and lets the wetness there coat her fingers.

She imagines forcing a naked blonde down on the mattress, settling herself on top of her and pushing her back down as she tries to sit up to gain some leverage.

Regina lets a finger slip inside her opening teasingly even as a small annoying buzz starts in the back of her mind telling her that this isn't working.

She tries to think of how she could drive Emma crazy and make her beg for release, but the mood is quickly fading.

With a disappointed huff the brunette lets her hand fall away from her most intimate parts as she gives up trying to get off to the mental image of dominating the sheriff.

Unbidden, the thought of the blonde pushing her down on her living room sofa as Emma herself bends down on the floor and forces Regina's skirt up and her legs apart, comes to the forefront of her mind. The blonde grins mischievously as she unceremoniously drags the other woman closer to the edge so she can kiss her way up a trembling thigh.

"Emma," the former Queen moans pitifully and desperately, making the other woman grin.

"You really need this don't you?" the sheriff coos as they lock eyes and the brunette nods vigorously, her hands tangling in long blonde tresses to try and urge her forward.

"If you want it, you have to beg for it."

With a groan filled with despair and anger and confusion, Regina throws off her covers and walks quickly into her bathroom, turning on the shower, all too aware of the fresh wetness and rekindled throbbing in her lower region that shouldn't be there.

No, this is not how it's supposed to go at all. What the hell is wrong with her? Damn Emma Swan for coming to Storybrooke, for being Henry's birth mom, for refusing to leave, for being Snow and Charming's daughter and for being so infuriating and intriguing and cute.


	11. Chapter 11

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters and make no profit.

* * *

When Regina has showered away her anger and frustration and dressed herself impeccably, it's still way too early in the morning to expect anyone to be out and about.

_5 days since I could have been kissing Emma Swan. No, stop thinking about that stubborn woman._

The former Queen feels like screaming or throwing something. She shouldn't care about the hurt look when she rejected the blonde or when she basically called her a whore. She should be delighted that the sheriff has stayed away from her for the last 5 days.

So why the hell does she feel like she misses the goofy smiles and the clumsiness and the way Emma always speaks her mind and calls her out on her bullshit?

Her mind chooses this moment to provide her with the pleading eyes of the sheriff asking her to help with the outsider that has crossed the town line and crashed.

With a resigned sigh, Regina lets the realization that she's going to help the blonde regardless of the still missing apologies from her parents wash over her.

The only reason she's okay with it is because she's decided that she's not helping the Charmings, but herself, by making sure the existence of magic remains a secret. She's spent too much time and energy on managing this town to let outsiders destroy it.

In her mind it's also a good way to say she's sorry to Emma for treating her like she did.

With a certain satisfaction in knowing she has a sense of purpose for the early day she gets into her Mercedes and starts the drive to the hospital.

* * *

"Regina, what are you doing here?" Emma exclaims when she sees the former mayor walking away from the room she is just on her way to visit.

The blonde thinks she sees the other woman jump slightly before she spins around quickly to look at her.

"I'm just protecting the town I've built, something you seem to fail to do," the brunette replies tersely, raising an eyebrow that dares the woman to contradict the statement.

The sheriff's eyes widen and she scrambles to get to the room where 'Greg, the outsider' is still recovering. She lets out a breath of relief when the man looks at her surprised as she bursts through the doors. Then she realizes what her reaction signals to the former Queen and she feels like doing a face-palm as she spins out of the room just as fast as she entered.

With growing panic she finds that the brunette isn't standing where she was when Emma abruptly departed and without conscious thought she starts running towards the hospital exit.

"Regina, wait," she calls when she catches the unmistakable back of the former mayor just about to exit.

"I'm sorry," she pants when she comes to a stop next to a clearly displeased brunette just outside the building.

"Is that all? I have other places to be," Regina replies nonchalantly as she starts walking again, only to be stopped when the other woman grabs her arm firmly.

"Don't be so difficult, I said I was sorry."

"Well excuse me if I don't take too kindly to people always thinking I murder everyone that troubles me," the brunette snaps irritably, slapping away the hand that still has a hold on her arm.

"I'm sorry."

"You've said that already. It doesn't change anything," the former Queen responds somewhat sullenly, trying to mask her hurt.

"I know, I jumped to conclusions and wasn't thinking rationally. It won't happen again," Emma promises quickly, hoping to appease the other woman enough to not walk away before they can talk.

"I'm sure it will," the brunette replies coldly, knowing it's a promise the other woman can't keep. Her father is Charming after all.

"Contrary to popular belief I'm not actually much inclined to killing people. I rather prefer to find other ways to punish them and find some use of their talents."

Regina is only half offended at the way the sheriff smirks at her statement.

"I don't doubt it. I do vaguely recall being called a whore a few days ago."

It's not meant to be a jab at the brunette as Emma is already over it, having a pretty decent idea of why the former mayor reacted like she did. But she appreciates the brief look of regret that passes over the other woman's features when she mentions it just the same.

"Yes, well, that was…uncalled for," Regina says softly as she looks away from the other woman for a moment.

"If you want you could bring Henry over for dinner and then when he's in bed we could…talk?"

The blonde has to hide her smirk at the slight grimace the former Queen releases at her own suggestion, clearly not finding the thought of actually having an honest conversation very appealing.

"I'd love to," Emma replies quickly with a smile. "But we're having a celebration for Archie this afternoon since he turns out to be alive. You should come with us though and then we can talk after?"

Regina fails to fully hide her scowl at this new information.

"I don't know if it's such a good idea. All those people-" she starts uncomfortably, but the sheriff cuts her off promptly.

"Don't be ridiculous. Archie wants you there and Henry and I will make sure you're not left to fend for yourself," the blonde says with a wink and a grin.

"Fine," the brunette grumbles as she turns to leave, suddenly having to find out what to wear and what to bring, something she knows will take a lot of time.

"Great, I'll pick you up at five," Emma yells after the other woman's retreating form, her stomach in jitters as she tries to figure out what to wear to impress the former Queen.

* * *

"Emma, honey, we're leaving. Are you ready to go?" Snow asks softly while she taps the door gently. There's scrambling on the other side for a moment before the door opens just enough for the blonde to peek outside.

Even though most of her everyday clothes are thrown into a few boxes in her rented room at Granny's, Emma felt she needed something a little classier if she wanted to make an impression on the always pristine former mayor. And that meant she was forced to go to her parents' place.

"Sorry, I forgot to tell you that I'm picking up Regina, so if you guys could just bring Henry, I'll see you there soon," she says quickly before trying to close the door and failing as the dark haired woman outside lays her weight against it.

"What?" the blonde asks agitated at Snow's confused look.

"What have you been doing in there for so long?"

"Nothing, just getting ready for the party," the blonde counters quickly, scowling at the other woman's dubious and thoughtful look.

"Open the door," Snow demands.

"No," the sheriff answers back, trying to force the door closed, but before she's fully prepared for it, the dark haired woman gives a hard push that almost makes her lose her footing and forces her to take a step back.

She rolls her eyes at the gasp Snow releases when the door opens enough to reveal the blonde and she begrudgingly lets the other woman enter, moving back to the mirror in annoyance.

"Emma," Snow chokes out as she looks at her daughter.

"Don't make a big deal out of it okay? I just want to look nice."

"Well, is it for someone special?" the dark haired woman presses gently, forcing herself not to cry at the sudden burst of emotions she experiences as she looks at her daughter all prettied up.

"What? No," the blonde exclaims as she spins around to glare at her mother. "I just think it would be nice to show people that I can make an effort, you know, and what better occasion than a celebration right?"

Snow raises her eyebrows at her daughter, clearly conveying that she doesn't believe her, but will let it go for the moment.

"If you say so. I'll see you soon."

Emma lets out a relieved and nervous sigh when the door closes and she hears the dark haired woman ushering the others out of the apartment.

* * *

"Miss Swan, you're -" Regina never finishes the sentence as she catches sight of the woman outside her door.

"I know, I know. I'm late and I'm sorry. I had a last minute crisis, but it's all fixed now," the blonde rushes out as she gives her best apologetic smile.

"That's…alright," the former Queen breathes as she ushers the other woman inside and closes the door against the chill air.

She has no doubts that Emma is going to catch a cold with how little clothes she seems to be donning, but she can't deny that it makes for quite a sight.

The rich and somewhat darker green dress she's wearing is short and tight, shoving off her well-toned body and accentuating her green eyes. She has obviously curled her hair a little to bring forth her natural locks even more and there's a slightly darker eye-shade than normal, as well as lips painted deeply red.

All in all, it's something Regina has never seen before and something she most definitely approves off. Had she not been so well trained at masking her emotions she's certain she would have to pick her jaw off the floor.

"You look…delectable," the brunette rasps, sending a glare at the other woman when Emma smirks at her.

"I didn't know you even had a dress. Archie must be something special for you to make such a fuss," the former mayor states nonchalantly to try to appear unaffected.

"Oh yes, I'm really hoping to impress him tonight," Emma teases back, delighted at the small smile it elicits from the other woman.

"Should we go then?" she asks as she reaches out her hand for the former Queen to take.

"Yes, but we're driving my car and you'll have to take one of my coats so you don't freeze to death."

"Fair enough," the blonde supplies, secretly grateful at the other woman for providing her with something against the cold autumn air since she chose to forego it in favor of making sure she got Regina's full attention.

Not one of her brightest ideas, but she at least got the desired effect.

* * *

When Emma and Regina walk into the diner together, people turn to stare at them, but carry on their conversations. It isn't until the blonde takes off the coat that the room suddenly becomes uncomfortably quiet.

The former mayor scowls at everyone as Emma tries her best not to blush and squirm at all the attention she's suddenly getting. She's almost regretting her choice of dress now that she's shown it to Regina. She's the only one she wants to admire her in this outfit. A quick glance over at the brunette confirms that she apparently feels much the same way.

"Hey mom," Henry exclaims as he throws himself at the sheriff and hugs her tightly.

"Hey mom," he repeats as he does the same with the former Queen, grinning and taking their hands to drag them to his table.

People slowly start their conversations back up as they try to not appear to pay attention to the two women and their shared son.

Throughout the evening, Emma mostly keeps her word to the former mayor, never leaving her side unless she's sure Henry is with her to keep her occupied.

Regina feared it would be awkward and lonely at the party as she's not highly regarded in the town at the moment, but she's finding it surprisingly easy to ignore the other people and their failed tries at covert stares.

Instead she chooses to focus on her son's enthusiasm and Emma seemingly taking every opportunity to brush against her in some way.

At one point the brunette even feels comfortable enough to reach over to her son and wipe a smudge off his face, giving the blonde woman a deliberately direct and upfront view of the vast cleavage on display just for Emma's sake.

She has to fight the urge to laugh out loud as the sheriff literally chokes on her drink, blushing profusely at the worry Henry shows while Regina smirks knowingly.

"I'm fine, I just need some air. Gimme a second," the blonde tells Henry as she quickly leaves their table and disappears outside.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" the boy asks the former mayor with worry.

"I'm sure she'll be just fine honey."

"I'm glad you're not fighting so much anymore," he states with a smile as he takes a large gulp of his drink.

Henry's words catch Regina off guard, but she manages to give him a reassuring smile.

"I am too." And she's a little surprised to find that she actually means it.

"If I come back, you're not gonna try to keep Emma away from me right?" he asks innocently and the brunette has to fight the urge to wrap him in her arms and promise him the world. Can she honestly tell her son she won't try to keep him all to herself though?

"Of course not, I just want you to be happy," she tells him with a smile and the relief on his face causes a stab of jealousy in her chest that she quickly pushes away.

"Thanks mom. Having both of you makes me happy."

The former Queen has to fight hard to keep the tears forming in her eyes from falling at his words.

"Want me to tell you a secret?" she asks as she leans towards him conspiringly and watches with amusement as he nods vigorously, leaning towards her as well.

"She's kind of growing on me."

He grins widely at her and she ruffles his hair as she stands up.

"I'll be right back," she tells him before moving towards the exit where the sheriff has yet to come back in.

She finds the blonde leaning against the wall just outside, staring blankly at the street, apparently lost in thought. With determination she crosses over to the woman who straightens as soon as she sees her.

"Regina-" Emma starts, only to be cut off by a look she's come to known as the former mayors silent way of saying 'shut the hell up and listen.'

"If we do this, we tell no one," the brunette says firmly and from the way the other woman's eyes widen, it's clear she understands perfectly what she's referring to.

"Until we make sure Cora is gone, we keep whatever is between us behind closed doors."

"Okay," Emma agrees immediately, not bothering to contain her pleased grin.

"That means no flirting, no touching and no gestures that can be misinterpreted in public."

"Got it," the blonde says as she mock salutes.

"That means no grinning like an idiot either," Regina states annoyed, scowling as the other woman's smile seems to grow impossibly wider.

"And we are not girlfriends. We're just…seeing where this thing between us goes."

"If you say so."

Emma is proud that she manages to reduce her ecstatic grin to a pleased smirk.

In truth, she thought it would take a lot more than dressing up and subtle touches to get the former Queen to cave, but she's delighted at how much Regina seems to want this as well.

"Okay. Good. Now get back inside, Henry is worried about you."

Emma fights the urge to do a fist pump or a victory dance, instead grinning like an idiot as she walks back to the table where their son is waiting anxiously to make sure they are both alright.

Neither of them notices the figure emerging from the shadows when they walk back inside the diner.


	12. Chapter 12

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own the chracters and make no profit from them.

AN: So this has taken longer than I wanted, but I've just started a new job so things are chaotic. Hope it doesn't disappoint and I'll try to not let it go this long next time.

* * *

"Are you sure you don't wanna come?" Henry pleads and the sheriff scowls playfully at him.

"I'm sure. I _really _need to get out of this dress," she tells them as she wriggles uncomfortably, deliberately ignoring the other woman's smirk.

Regina looks down at their son and recognizes the look he gets, acknowledging that she has to think fast if she wants him to go home with her.

"I'm sure Miss Swan will be more than happy to come to us for breakfast tomorrow morning Henry."

She deliberately looks down at the boy instead of the blonde raising her eyebrows at her.

"Will you?" he asks excitedly as he looks imploringly at his birth mom.

"Of course," Emma answers quickly, before scrunching her nose slightly at something that pops into her head.

"But not too early right? It's Saturday tomorrow."

"You're right," the brunette interjects before their son can open his mouth. "I'm sure eight will be fine."

The sheriff scowls at the other woman as Henry nods his agreement.

"Tomorrow then Miss Swan," Regina says smugly as she turns and motions for her son to follow.

"Right, tomorrow," she confirms with more enthusiasm in her voice than she really feels as she waves meekly after them. As soon as the door closes behind them, she lets out a groan of frustration, scowling when Ruby chuckles at her antics.

"The prices I have to pay," the blonde says dramatically as she releases a theatrical sigh, grinning when the other woman laughs out loud.

"Getting up early on a weekend to be with your son and get served delicious food doesn't sound too bad," Ruby counters, smirking when Emma sticks her tongue out childishly.

"Night Ruby," the sheriff says with mock offence as she starts walking away.

"Night Emma," the brunette sings back before adding with a wink, "Sweet dreams."

* * *

Regina is impressed when the sheriff arrives only 6 minutes after eight, even though it's with a scowl and sunglasses, looking for all the world like she has a massive hangover.

"Good morning," she says overly chipper, delighted at the sour look she receives.

"I hate you," Emma grumbles as she moves past the other woman, throws off her shoes and sinks down heavily on the sofa in the living room.

"Of course you do," the brunette acknowledges lightly, disappearing for a moment before reappearing with a steaming cup of coffee and handing the freshly brewed concoction to the other woman.

The sheriff quickly takes a sip before letting out an appreciative moan.

"God, I love you," she hums and the former mayor smiles approvingly at her.

"That's better," Regina acknowledges with a pleased smirk, briefly entertaining the idea of patting the other woman's cheek just to see her reaction at the condescending gesture.

"Henry should be down any moment. Please do try to look a little more alive Miss Swan," the brunette teases before she whisks away into the kitchen with an amused smile, knowing the other woman is probably glaring at her back.

"So what do you wanna do today?" Emma asks their son between mouthfuls of food.

"I don't know. What do you wanna do?" he asks back, grinning.

"Regina, any ideas?" the blonde asks, looking over at the woman pretending to be busy with her food.

"Huh?" the brunette says surprised as she looks up and for a moment guilt hits the sheriff.

She's sitting in the other woman's home, enjoying her food and their son who doesn't seem to lend a thought to include his other mom in the conversation.

"What do you wanna do today?" she asks softly, frowning when the other woman's face hardens.

"I have some personal matters to attend to. I'm sure you can keep my son entertained."

"Uh, okay?" Emma responds, confused by the abrupt change. Henry seems to be as well because he excuses himself to go to the bathroom.

"What the hell Regina?" the sheriff asks as soon as she's sure their son is out of earshot.

"I don't want or need your sympathy or charity," the former mayor spits out with disdain.

"That's not what it was," Emma argues as she scowls at the other woman, something she seems to do a lot.

"Wasn't it?" Regina challenges as she raises her brows pointedly.

"No, I was trying to…You know what, forget it," the blonde says with a sigh. It's too damn early to start an argument and that's the only thing she's sure is going to happen unless she wants to try to explain the mess that is all her conflicting and confusing emotions for the woman sitting opposite her.

"It's not pity," she starts, but before she can say anything else, Henry's footsteps can be heard and she promptly cuts herself off, both women sending him tense smiles as he sits back down at the table.

"Give me a minute," Emma tells Henry about two hours later as he runs excitedly out the door.

"What?" the brunette asks defensively when the sheriff faces her.

"I was just trying to spend some time with both of you," the blonde says awkwardly, letting her hands move inside the pockets of her jeans as she tips back and forth nervously on her feet.

"Maybe," Regina says and the other woman knows it's the closest she's going to get to an apology.

"I really do have to take care of some things. I'll call you later?"

Emma nods her assent and before she can really stop herself she takes two quick steps so she's standing close to the other woman. Before she can lose her nerve or think her actions through, she leans forward and kisses the brunette's cheek softly, smiling at the sharp intake of breath from the former Queen.

"Later," the blonde says with a playful wink before hurrying outside.

* * *

"Where's my mother?"

"I was wondering when you'd stop by. Your Majesty," Hook replies as he does a mock courtesy as best he can in his seated position on the hospital bed.

"Drop the mockery and answer my question," the brunette says curtly as she pulls a chair closer and sits down, crossing her legs and giving him an impatient stare.

"I thought you were on speaking terms with Emma now. Hasn't she told you?" he asks with a smirk.

"You told her nothing of value. So now I'm asking you. Where. Is. My. Mother."

"I'd love to tell you darling, but I don't know," the man says with a sigh.

"Do you have _any_ idea how much pain I could cause you?" the former Queen says with a sneer, not in the mood to play games.

"Forgive me if I'm not shaking with fear Your Majesty, but I hear you're trying to change."

Regina stands abruptly, danger flashing in her eyes. With eerie calmness she leans closer to the one handed man so she can leer threateningly over him.

"You underestimate my desire to find and get rid of my mother," she states lowly as she lets her hand brush over the man's still bandaged side.

Hook hisses as she presses down slightly in warning.

"Besides, who would know?" she says with a smirk, delighted when the crippled man unconsciously tries to shy away from her touch as she presses down a little more firmly.

"I want my hook back," he grits out, all playfulness gone as he realizes the severity of the predicament he finds himself in.

"You're in no position to bargain or make demands. You're lucky if I let you live," the brunette counters, pushing down hard to make her point, reveling in the yelp the other man releases.

"I don't know where she is. She has her own agenda and she disappeared when Archie was freed," he grounds out, relieved when Regina stops pushing and leans back slightly to give him some breathing room.

"And what kind of agenda is that?"

"How should I know? She's not really the confiding type," he retorts sarcastically and the former Queen throws him a warning look.

"She wants you."

"And what does she want with me?" the brunette asks, appearing far calmer than she really feels.

"I. Don't. Know," Hook says darkly, staring defiantly up at the woman glaring down at him.

"Is Henry in danger?"

"I don't think she's going to kill him if that's what you mean," the man replies with a shrug before continuing. "All I know is that Cora would do almost anything to get what she wants. But you already know that."

Regina huffs in disappointment before she leans herself on Hooks ribs so she's right next to his ear.

"Don't go anywhere," she whispers, smirking at his sharp intake of breath at her weight, before she turns and sways out of the room.

* * *

Her day with Henry is ruined after no more than a couple of hours by the incessant ringing of her phone.

"There's a reason I'm not picking up you know," she states annoyed when she answers.

"And there's a reason I keep calling," Snow shoots back without missing a beat, making the blonde scowl as it can't mean anything good.

"Regina has been to see Hook and Belle freaked out over Rumpel and Leroy is drunk and demanding we all return to the Enchanted forest ," the dark haired woman informs in one breath, and Emma doesn't even want to know how her mother got all this information.

She feels a little guilty for forgetting what happened to Belle and landed both her and Hook at the hospital, but there is just too much happening too fast for her to remember everything. Besides, the woman has lost her memory so she can't hold it against her and they weren't really all that close.

And what's more pressing and important to her right now is why Regina went to see Hook. What did they talk about?

As soon as she hangs up with the promise she's on her way, she calls Henry over.

"We have to go, you're staying with Granny."

"What, why?" he asks, immediately adopting a defensive stance.

"Because things are chaos right now and as the sheriff I have to sort it out and investigate and you can't follow me around."

"But I want to know what's going on," he says with defiance as he stomps his foot childishly.

"I'll let you know later, but you're still a kid and that means some stuff isn't for you."

Needless to say, Henry is looking sour the whole ride back to Snow, clearly not pleased at being excluded because of his young years.

* * *

"You've been gone all day, where were you? Granny wouldn't tell me anything," Henry demands as he rushes down the stairs as soon as Emma, Snow and Charming walk in the door to Snow's apartment.

"We just had to take care of some things," the blonde replies as she sits down by the kitchen counter and watch her mother as she starts to make tea while James looks through the fridge for something they can eat.

"I can't wait to go to bed," Emma says with a groan as she lets her head drop to the counter.

"What happened?" Henry asks as he sits down next to her and stares imploringly.

The sheriff is saved from replying by a knock on the door and she jumps up to answer it, but before she can get to the door, it swings open.

"Gold," Emma lets out in surprise. She hasn't seen much of the man since the accident with the outsider and Hook and Belle, but he doesn't usually show up with good news.

"We've all had a long day," she starts, but before she can finish he interrupts her.

"You remember that favor you owe me Miss Swan?"

"Yeah," the blonde replies warily, knowing whatever comes next is not going to be something she'll like.

"I'm cashing it in."

"It's not a good-" she begins, feeling Charming come up beside her, but once again Rumpelstiltskin cuts her off.

"You do honor your agreements don't you?"

The threat in his voice is clear and the sheriff knows she will have no choice but to comply, especially given what the man is capable of.

And so she just puts her thumbs into her back pockets and scowl at him as she feels her son come to stand next to her.

"I need to find someone. So we're leaving first thing tomorrow."

"Leaving?" Snow interjects loudly, moving to stand next to the rest of her family.

"Who?" Emma asks confused.

"My son. And it has to be first thing because every minute I'm here is a minute closer to me killing Hook."

Emma takes a deep breath at the words, knowing them to be true and not to underestimate the desperate man in front of her.

"So it's really best for all concerned if I leave. And you're gonna come with me," Rumpel says before turning to look between Charming and Snow.

"Oh, and we have a _long_ history so know this, and know it to be true. If any harm comes to Belle while I'm gone, I'm killing all of you."

As he says it, he looks down at Henry, and the blonde instinctively draws him close to her at the not so discrete threat.

"I'll see you at dawn."

They stand in shock for long moments after the man has limped away from the apartment.

* * *

"I have some bad news," Emma starts as soon as the former mayor opens the door.

Regina quickly ushers her inside and demands the sheriff explains with a silent look.

_If something has happened to Henry and she's failed to protect him so help me I will destroy her._

"Mr. Gold has cashed in the favor I owe him. I'm leaving town with him first thing tomorrow."

Of all the things she can think of that the blonde might say, that certainly wasn't one of them.

"Why?"

"It has something to do with his son."

_Baelfire? So what's changed? Has he found him? Why did it take him this long?_

"But why now?" the brunette asks out loud as her brows furrow in contemplation.

"I don't know, but I don't really have a choice," Emma says apologetically.

Regina can't help but feel that it's not random that this is happening now. For Rumpel to have found his son he has to have acquired something new with which to find him and the only one that can have provided him with that is her mother. The realization that her mother wants Rumpelstiltskin and Emma gone from the town is unnerving. She's clearly planning to make some move soon.

"So you're leaving? With Hook and Cora here?"

"I have to Regina. Do you really think I _want_ to go? Even if they weren't here, I still wouldn't want to because we're…" she stops abruptly at the warning look she receives.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," she says awkwardly instead, taking a tentative step closer to the poised woman, releasing an internal sigh of relief when the former mayor doesn't step back, but allows her to approach.

"I really wish I didn't have to go," she tells the other woman, her hand moving to cup a cheek as her eyes plead with Regina to understand.

The brunette closes her eyes very briefly, soaking in the intimate gesture and lets the sheriff's sincerity wash over.

"I know, I believe you," she whispers after a moment as their eyes lock.

With a sudden urgency, Emma realizes this is the last time she's going to be able to look into those deep brown pools always so full of life for possibly quite a while. This is the last chance she has to touch the other woman like this for days, or even worse, weeks.

And with that thought in mind, she leans forward and gently brushes her lips across full, painted red ones. Regina freezes for a moment in surprise before she presses back against the blonde. It starts out as a simple and somewhat awkward first kiss like most usually are, but it quickly turns heated when the brunette presses her weight more tightly against the sheriff and opens her mouth to run her tongue over Emma's bottom lip. With a groan, the blonde presses back against the other woman as she opens her mouth and lets her own tongue tangle eagerly with the former mayor's.

She meant for it to be a simple kiss, just a promise of things to come when she gets back and something to keep her going when she's away. But if Regina wants a real kiss then who is she to complain?

Hands tangle in her locks as she lets her own find hips, before sliding around the back so she can fully embrace the woman already pressed tightly against her. Their tongues and lips dance together for what feels like a lifetime and no time at all, before the brunette pulls back regretfully with a nip to Emma's bottom lip.

They stare at each other as they both breathe heavily, trying to figure out what to say to the other.

Regina is the first to find her words.

"Stay," she pleads breathily and the sheriff doesn't know if she means 'don't leave town' or 'spend the night'.

It doesn't matter since she can't do either.

"When I get back," she promises the brunette, wishing with all she is that she could prevent the dejected and disappointed look that chases across the other woman's face before she can put on a look of indifference.

"I have to go," Emma says softly, acutely aware of the overwhelming and conflicting emotions that's trying to get its grip on her as her body and mind tell her to get away from the one that's causing it.

"I'll miss you," she states as she takes a step back to put some much needed distance between them.

"Yes, I am quite missable," Regina replies with a half-smirk, unable to voice out loud that she's thinking the same thing. Vulnerability has never come naturally to her and what's the point if the woman is going to be away for who knows how long anyway?

The blonde grins at the somewhat expected reply as she continues to back up.

"I'll try to keep in touch," Emma informs before she turns and walk out the door.

Not before she's sure she's out of sight from the mansion, does the sheriff stop to try to get her rapidly beating heart under control, grinning like an idiot at the realization that she's just had a very enjoyable make-out session with the former Queen and that the woman will be waiting for her return so they can pick up where they left off.


	13. Chapter 13

AN: A very Regina centric chapter this time. The next one will focus mostly on Emma I think.

AN2: I'm not liking the show very much at the moment. I watch it because I feel like I have to find out where they're going and get hints and tips from the charaters' stories. But I think they're falling into the trap of predictability and cowardice and quite frankly it makes the whole thing a little boring and disappointing.

* * *

"When do you think she's coming back?" Henry asks and Regina sighs internally.

He's been asking her the same question every night before he goes to bed for the last 5 days and it hurts. Because if she's being honest with herself, she doubts he would ask Emma the same if she was the one travelling. And so she puts on a sad and comforting smile when she tells him she doesn't know, but inside her anger and jealousy grows at what the blonde woman has taken from her.

Not long ago, she was the one her son depended on, but these days he barely seems to tolerate her and he pays little attention to what she says, sometimes outright ignoring her when she tries to scold him or giving her a look that clearly states 'you're not my mom so I don't have to listen to you.'

It makes her want to scream and cry and blow things up. Instead she often just stares hard at Henry until he becomes uncomfortable and looks away, grudgingly doing as she tells him. It's tiring and hurtful and even though it really isn't fair to Emma, she kind of blames her for it. Everything was fine before she showed up after all.

It's confusing when a part of her dislikes the woman for breaking her curse and ruining things with her son, while another part is glad because she kind of likes said woman and what they could possibly have together.

Why did everything in her life always have to be so damn complicated?

* * *

She's just getting out of her car after dropping Henry off for school when she hears the voice she hasn't missed for close to 40 years.

"Hello dear."

The voice turns her blood to ice, a chill running down her spine as she automatically straightens and turns around. She half prays she won't see what she fears, but there's no mistaking the woman standing across from her.

"Mother," Regina exclaims with a mixture of fear, surprise and anger.

The former mayor stares at the other woman as a rush of different emotions travel through her. Fear that her mother has come to get her revenge by killing her or torturing her. Anger at how the other woman dare show herself after all that she's put her through. Uncertainty over what will happen and what she wishes to do to her mother.

"I had to see you," Cora starts as she takes a step towards Regina, the woman taking a step back in response.

"I needed to tell you that I know why you sent me through the looking glass."

Regina highly doubts her mother could even begin to fathom why she did what she did.

"And I know why you tried to have me killed."

Not likely. Her mother is incapable of love or fear. She could never understand her conflicting emotions; born from being manipulated and hurt and neglected.

"And it's…it's alright."

"I think it's _not_ alright," Regina replies. It might be alright for her mother, but that doesn't change the fact everything hasn't been ok for as long as she can remember.

"I love you."

The words sound so wrong coming from her mother. Forced. All she's ever wanted is to be loved and cared for. But her mother has shown her time and again that she is incapable of such emotions. Why should that have changed now?

"I've just, I've always shown it in all the wrong ways."

Her mother seems awfully insightful about her wrongdoings though and she's very good at sounding genuine. Maybe she really is trying?

"And I never should have made you marry the king."

No, now she knows it's just her mother playing her. The only regret Cora would ever have in that regard is that she didn't foresee her daughter's desperation to be free after all the years spent trying so hard to squash her independence and resistance.

"I'm so sorry."

She wants to laugh at how pathetic the words sound coming from her mother. She wants to cry because she knows it's all a lie. She wants to crush Cora for daring to deceive her again.

But she can do neither of these things. Because magic is unpredictable here. And she can't risk an all-out fight with her mom when the consequences could end up being fatal to her. She doesn't really want to die after all.

"When you cried over my coffin it…It all changed."

Regina wants to believe that it did. But it's near impossible to believe. Her mother has always been a master at saying one thing and doing another.

"You framed me. For the cricket."

"Temporarily. So you could see what these people really think of you."

"Why?"

"I didn't want you to reject me. Not again."

That doesn't make any sense to the former Queen at all. Her mother has only ever done things for one person and that is herself.

"You wanted me broken."

"Receptive."

Regina actually lets out a short laugh of incredulity at that.

"You always were the most manipulative-" she starts before she realizes what she's saying, how dangerous it is, and stops. "Well, it didn't work."

"I just want us to start over."

"I don't see that happening mother."

"Regina, darling. The people here don't care about you. They don't really want you to change, they want to see you fail. They need a scapegoat."

The words ring a little too true. But she can't give in and break down now. She has to stay strong. For Henry. And Emma.

"I guess it's a good thing I don't care about any of them then," she replies stoically and she doesn't miss how her mother's eyes narrow marginally at her answer.

"Ah yes, of course. You only care about Henry and Emma Swan believing in you."

Regina doesn't miss the mockery Cora tries her best to hide, but it's clear she doesn't like the name rolling of her tongue. Did she know about Emma?

"How is that going for you? Last time I checked, Miss Swan was out of town for who knows how long. She just up and left, leaving you to temporarily take care of Henry. And Henry appears more concerned about his birth mother being away than how you're doing."

"He's _my _son, I'm his mother," Regina snaps angrily, not liking how her mother has obviously been keeping a close eye on her, or how she knows her insecurities and how to use them against her.

"Let's face it honey, I'm the only one who truly cares about you, the only one who would never leave you."

It would be so very easy to fall back on her mother and her manipulative, cleverly chosen words. With her mother, she could take control of the whole town and get them to do what she wanted. But would it really make her happier? She can't imagine Henry ever wanting to stay with her if she goes back to being the Evil Queen. It's the very thing she's tried so hard to convince him she's nothing alike anymore. And this thing that's developing between herself and Emma would be sure to stop. If she goes back to who she used to be, there's no way the blonde would want to be with her, and there's no way she herself would be able to allow herself that kind of relationship. No, it definitely wouldn't give her any happiness.

"I am trying so hard to be worthy of Henry."

"By letting people walk all over you? Sweetheart, you've never been one to bend for others. You deserve better. People should be worshipping you."

And finally Regina sees her mother's mask slipping, telling her that clearly Cora has her own plans and that they don't necessarily involve caring about her daughter's happiness.

"If you really care about me like you say you do, you'll stop whatever it is you're planning. No killing, no deception, no lies. Otherwise, stay away from me and my son."

She walks up to her house stoically, hoping her mother buys her anger and confidence. As soon as she closes the door behind herself, she releases a breath she didn't realize she's been holding.

As she gingerly removes her coat, she realizes her hands are shaking, her heart thumbing erratically against her chest.

She fists her hands and closes her eyes, forcing herself to take deep, calming breaths.

When she opens her eyes again, she has slipped back into her mask, pushing away her hurt and anger and fear.

* * *

"Henry, do your homework please," Regina tells her son annoyed and when he looks up at her, she knows what's coming.

"I don't want to. You can't make me. You're not my-"

"We both are," the brunette spits out before he can finish. "I've raised you for eleven years and I've never done wrong by you so you treat me with respect and do as I tell you, is that clear?"

She doesn't really mean to be so harsh, but damn it, her mother has already thrown her off her game and there's only so much cheekiness and hurtful words from her son she can take.

He looks shocked at her for long moments before he silently walks over to his schoolbag and pulls out his homework.

Henry doesn't say much to her the whole rest of the evening other than what is required to be polite, and she doesn't press him. She has enough on her mind as it is without feeling guilty for her outburst.

When she tucks him into bed, the silence is pressing, her movements slightly hesitant and uncomfortable. She's half way bent over to kiss him on his forehead before she remembers that he's mad at her and she straightens back up uncomfortably.

"Goodnight," she whispers softly, sadly as she turns and starts to walk away.

"Mom?" Henry asks uncertainly and she spins around quickly to look at him, scared that something is wrong.

"I just miss her. I like having both of you," he admits and she has to fight the urge to wrap him up in her arms and rock him back and forth while whispering words of reassurance like she used to before he went looking for his birth mother.

"I know," she answers him with a reassuring smile before she walks to the door. She stops when she reaches it, her hand clutching the frame for a moment in contemplation before she turns back around to her son.

"I miss her too."

He smiles at her as she makes himself comfortable in his bed while she turns off the light and leaves a small gap in the door.

_Emma Swan where the hell are you?_


	14. Chapter 14

Rating: T for some swear words.

Disclaimer: I own nothing and make no profit from the story.

AN: I know, I know, it's been forever. But some parts of this was extremely hard for me to write for some reason and also there's been absolute chaos in my life as I've moved to my own place amongst other things.  
Hopefully, it won't take this long again. I'm not very happy with some of the parts in this chapter, but hopefully it's okay. All mistakes are mine

* * *

Finding someone who doesn't want to be found can take some time, Emma knows that. But for every day that goes by, the blonde can feel how the nagging in her head gets ever more insistent, telling her that she shouldn't be here, that there's somewhere else she should rather be. She can't help but feel the growing fear that something bad is going to happen to someone she cares about the longer she stays away from Storybrooke.

* * *

_This can't be happening, _she thinks as she scrambles to her feet. It's like a bad dream.

Looking for some unknown person within a one block radius? Sure. She can ignore the creepy feeling she gets when Gold explains that his 'device' gave him a pretty accurate position for his son's whereabouts. Running after a man who obviously doesn't want them to find him? No problem. Outsmarting him so she can prevent his escape on account of some bruises and scrapes as they crash to the ground? She'll live.

But why in the fuck did it have to be Neal?

She probably shouldn't be so surprised. Her whole life has apparently been a lie. She was predestined to be 'the Savior' and release a bunch of fairy tale characters from the curse of an Evil Queen who also happens to be the one to raise her son and the one she is falling for, and now her baby daddy is freaking Gold's son?

There's just no way any of this is OKAY.

So really, who can blame her for throwing a minor tantrum as her ex tells her she'll only get answers if she goes with him to a bar? What is he expecting? That she'll just sit down calmly with him and take a beer?

Nothing about this is even remotely okay and why can't anything in life ever be easy?

* * *

"Well, what do you wanna know Emma? You want the truth? Ask away!"

It's infuriating how casual he looks when a million thoughts and emotions are running through the blonde, trying to fight their way out. "Did you know who I was when we met?"

"If I had, I wouldn't have gone near you."

"Come on," Emma pleads. She really needs him to tell her the truth. To know if it ever meant anything at all.

"Come on what? I was in hiding. I came here to get away from…all that crap."

"So then if you didn't know, you were just using me? You just needed someone to take the fall for all the watches that you stole."

"I wasn't using you. When we met I didn't know. I found out."

"How?" It feels surreal to sit with the man who knocked you up and sent you to jail and talk about a different world, a world that shouldn't even be real.

"When I went to sell the watches, I ran into a friend of yours. August. He knew who I really was."

Emma can't comprehend what the hell that even means.

"You left me…And let me go to prison because Pinocchio told you to?" she asks incredulously, feeling her anger bubble to the surface quickly.

"Emma-"

"I loved you," she tells him lowly, unable to hide the pain in her voice.

"I was, uh, was just, trying to help you." Neal looks down at his hands uncomfortably.

"By letting me go to jail."

"By getting you _home._"

"Are you telling me…that us meeting was a coincidence? Because how in the hell did that happen if it wasn't in your plans or your fathers?"

"Think about it. He wanted you to break the curse. Us meeting, that could have stopped it. Maybe it was fate?"

"You believe in that?" she asks incredulously.

"You know, there's not a ton about my father that I remember that doesn't suck. But he used to tell me that there are no coincidences. Everything that happens, happens by design, and there's nothing we can do about it. Forces greater than us conspire to make it happen. Fate, destiny, whatever you wanna call it the point is…maybe we met for a reason. Maybe something good came from us being together."

He looks at the blonde imploringly and Emma wills her mind to not think of their son for an irrational fear that he can actually read her thoughts. She pretends to ponder over his words for a moment.

"No. Not that I can think of," she says with a small shrug. "I just went to jail. That's it."

Neal, Bae, whatever he wants to be called actually looks sorry for that.

"It doesn't matter now, I'm over it," Emma tells him as she rises from her seat and she flinches inwardly at her poor lie. She's not sure she'll ever get over being stabbed in the back by someone she thought she loved and loved her back.

"And you," she adds with a sigh as she straightens her scarf and jacket. That statement at least, is true. She could never trust the man again and even if she could, he seems dull now in comparison to a certain fiery former mayor back in Storybrooke.

"Why do you…wear the keychain I got you?"

The blonde's hand automatically reaches for the necklace as she fingers it, a frown forming on her face. She doesn't like what he's implying.

"Because it's pretty and it would be a shame to throw it away just because of who bought it." Emma briefly wonders if he even did buy it or if he stole it. "And it reminds me never to trust someone again. Why, do you want it back?" she challenges and Neal raises his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"Come on. I made a deal with your father that I'd bring you to him."

"You made a deal with him?"

"Yeah. And I'm upholding my end."

"But you don't have to, you know that?"

"I know," Emma replies with a small smile comprised of something between sarcasm and glee. It feels a little like payback for what he's put her through, to force him to see the man he's been trying so long to run away from.

"Okay, so this should be real easy for you. Tell him that you lost me, tell him you can't find me. You do that…you never have to see me again."

He sounds desperate and for a moment Emma considers abiding by his wishes. But then she remembers what she's been through because of him and how Regina and their son are waiting for her to come back. And the fastest way to manage that is to just take him to Gold now.

"I'm sorry, but that's not gonna happen. I came here because I made a deal with Mr. Gold and I'm gonna keep it so I can get home to my family as fast as I can."

His eyes widen at her words, before he tries to look pleadingly at her. "Emma, please."

"Don't make me hurt you. Just come with me. You can run away from him afterwards, I really couldn't care less."

* * *

Emma watches uncomfortably as Neal and Gold size each other up, shifting restlessly from one foot to the other and deliberately trying to ignore what they're saying to each other. She's really just waiting for an opening so she can get the hell out of there and to where she should be.

It's all kinds of ironic, she thinks, that she's never felt much inclined to settle down, always itching to get away and be free, but now she's pacing impatiently because she actually wants to go back somewhere.

"Right, that's it. I'm going back," Emma states resolutely when there's a pause in the two men's awkward conversation.

"I don't think so Miss Swan. We're not done," Mr. Gold growls, looking at her both annoyed and threateningly all at once.

"Yes we are. I found him, what you do next have nothing to do with me."

"You can't just leave me here," Rumpel replies sounding a little bit intimidated at the thought of being left in a place he knows nothing about without his magic. He knows he has no experience with this world and he's grown so used to magic reappearing in Storybrooke that he feels lost without it.

"Then come back with me," the blonde replies exasperated. "We've been gone for a week and Regina was right. I think Cora wanted me out of town, so I need to get back and make sure everyone is okay."

He looks to his son who frowns at the limping man.

"I'm not going back with you," Neal says gruffly and it's all it takes for the sheriff to know Gold isn't going to go back with her. She highly doubts he'll be leaving without his newly found son and she doesn't have time to wait for them to argue themselves into an agreement. She quickly walks away before any of them can stop her.

* * *

"What do you want?" Regina asks tersely as she eyes the person appearing in front of her.

"I just want to be with my daughter."

The Mayor refrains from rolling her eyes, keeping her face devoid of any kind of emotion, just like the other woman has taught her. "You'll have to excuse me if I find that hard to believe. Past experiences."

Cora makes a dismissive gesture with her hand and gives her daughter a smile that tells her to stop being so dramatic. "I'm here to remind you that I'm the only one who _really_ cares for you."

"Is that so?" Regina questions with a quirk of her eyebrow as she folds her arms in front of herself as if this whole conversation is boring and taking up her time unnecessarily. She loathes the condescending smile her mother adopts.

"Have you looked at your son lately? He wants nothing to do with you. He thinks you're Evil and wants to be with his birth mother."

The mayor fights hard to not let it show how much the words hurt her. Cora has always been adept at sticking the knife where it will hurt the most.

"And Emma? How long has she been gone now? Has she even _called_ you? She doesn't seem to care all that much to me."

Regina swallows thickly as her mother's words hit too close to home, her hands unfolding and disappearing inside her jacket pockets to clutch tightly together where the other woman can't see.

"I, however, really do wish for you to be happy. And we can make it happen. _Together_."

"How?" the mayor breathes. She doesn't want to give in to her mother, but Cora is voicing the very fears she's been trying to not think about.

Somewhere in the far back of her mind, a bell goes off at the pleased smirk on the other woman's face.

"The dagger. If we control The Dark One, we can get him to do our bidding. We can make him get rid of anyone who tries to interfere with your happiness."

That bell in her mind is ringing louder. If she lets her mother have her way and hurt or kill anyone, she knows there's no way her son will ever want to be with her again. Then she really, truly will be 'Evil.'

No, it's not the right way to get what she wants. "But Henry-"

"Is just a confused young boy. He will come around as soon as there aren't any…distractions fighting for his attention."

Her mother's implications are all too clear and Regina can feel the conflict rising quickly within herself. The rational part of her knows she shouldn't even consider what Cora is saying. She hates to admit it, but she really wishes Emma was here. Then the blonde could tell her how wrong her mother is and that there are others here who care about her wellbeing.

But if Emma really does care about her, why hasn't she called? Maybe her mother is right, maybe the sheriff has just been telling her what she thinks she wants to hear.

"I-" the former mayor starts, only to jump slightly as her phone starts ringing, the vibration firm against her hand as she grabs it and pulls it out to look who is calling. Her lips draw themselves into a tight line as she promptly ignores the name flashing across her screen and looks up at Cora with eyes filled with renewed determination.

"We're done here. Please stay away from me and my family."

* * *

Emma frowns as the line goes to voicemail. It's unusual for Regina to not answer her phone. She usually has it with her everywhere and at this time she shouldn't be doing much else than helping Henry with homework or be making dinner. She really should have picked up.

It makes the blonde feel uneasy. What if something has happened?

"Hi Regina. Um, I sort of expected you to answer," she states sheepishly, feeling like an idiot. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm on my way back now and…I'm sorry I didn't call sooner, but things have been kinda crazy and…well, I'll just have to tell you about it face to face. Just…call me back and let me know you're okay. Please."

She sighs as she hangs up and does a face-palm at how ridiculous she must sound to the other woman when she hears the message; how needy and concerned. She can't imagine it's something the mayor will appreciate or find endearing.

The blonde tells herself she'll give the other woman until boarding time, before she'll call again. Regina could just be busy. Or maybe she's just pissed because she hasn't heard from her in so long. Emma really hopes that's all.

Regina waits until she's sure Henry is completely immersed in the movie she's letting him watch, before she disappears into her study to look at her phone.

She's annoyed at the way her heart beats a little more rapidly as she presses the button to hear the voicemail left for her.

The brunette lets out a relived sigh as the awkward voice of Emma Swan reaches her ear and she doesn't really pay attention to what's being said as she just lets herself be reassured by the other woman's familiar voice.

She frowns when she realizes she's missed most of the message and presses the button to rehear it.

'_Hi Regina. Um, I sort of expected you to answer._'

The mayor snorts at the way the sheriff sounds so unsure and lost that she didn't actually pick up when she rang. Like a puppy. How very typical.

'_I just wanted to let you know that I'm on my way back now and…I'm sorry I didn't call sooner, but things have been kinda crazy and-' _

Crazy? Like she has any idea what that really means. She hasn't had to deal with a petulant son or a manipulative mother or a whole town hating her and wanting her head. When that…that _woman_ dare show up at her doorstep she will give her a piece of her mind on how crazy things can truly be.

Regina angrily swipes at a wayward piece of her hair as she presses the replay button yet again since her internal rambling has made her miss the rest of the message.

'_well, I'll just have to tell you about it face to face. Just…call me back and let me know you're okay. Please._'

Funny, the sheriff actually sounds a little concerned. The brunette has already found Emma's number and is ready to dial before she catches herself.

For a week she has heard nothing from the other woman, not even a text to let her know she's not dead or hurt. So what does it matter if the blonde sounds concerned that the mayor isn't answering? It serves her right after all the worrying she's put her through.

No, Emma will just have to wait.

* * *

Regina tries her best not to keep looking over at her phone when she makes dinner. Part of her is hoping the blonde will call her again and another wants to pick up the phone and call her herself. She tries not to dwell on her conflicting emotions and pay closer attention to the food she's making. She's not very successful.

It rings again just after she's put away the dishes after dinner and put Henry to work on a school essay. The brunette stares transfixed at the way it vibrates on the counter, contemplating whether or not she should answer.

"Who was it?" Henry asks once it stops and Regina jumps slightly, having forgotten her son is sitting just a few feet away working.

"No one important," she replies quickly, snatching it up and turning it to completely silent before walking over to the boy and resting one hand softly on his shoulder. "How is it going? Do you need any help?"

"Not yet, I'll let you know when I do," he tells her before he bends over his paper and bites his lip slightly in concentration. The former mayor smiles to herself and quietly retreats to the living room where she notices that she has received a new voicemail.

She quickly presses play and puts the device tightly against her ear as she keeps watch for any sign of her son.

'_Regina, it's me again. You didn't call me back and I'm just about to get on the plane. I know you can't be too busy to not let me know you're okay so this better be you just wanting payback for me not contacting you._'

The brunette smirks at how well Emma knows her.

'_Just, please let me know if this is punishment so I don't have to worry that you're dead or something_.'

Regina rolls her eyes at the way the sheriff always likes to overdramatize things. If she was dead, the blonde would have heard it from someone else already. She really should start to think things more through before opening her annoying, delectable mouth.

Oh well, no need to rush her reply. Emma should be on the plane now so she won't see the message until she lands anyway.

It isn't until she's put Henry to bed, that Regina remembers she should have let the other woman know she's okay. It completely skipped her mind when her son asked if he could tuck him in and read him a story just like she used to before everything fell apart.

It's not surprising then, that she finds another missed call and a voicemail when she looks at her phone.

'_Regina, this isn't funny. You call me back right now or I'm coming over there as soon as I get back, even if it's the middle of the night, and I'll break down your goddamn door._'

Even as she feels a twinge of regret for causing the blonde worry she can't help but find the anger and anxiety so clear in Emma's voice intriguing and amusing. It's been a long time since anyone has shown any concern for her wellbeing and it makes her heart flutter pleasantly.

She really should let the other woman know she's okay though. It's just, Emma did make her suffer for a whole week and it's nice to hear that she cares after all the doubts her mother and herself has been putting into her head.

She'll have to call her when she goes to bed so her door can stay intact and Henry doesn't get scared.

* * *

Regina is annoyed that she spends an hour walking around in her home, trying to do something reasonable, but really just waiting for her phone to ring again. She doesn't know why she can't just dial the sheriff herself -doesn't want to think about why- but for whatever reason she is just waiting, hoping for the other woman to call so she can answer.

She releases a huff as she glances at her phone for the dozenth time and notices what time it is. Feeling oddly disappointed, the brunette tells herself to just get ready for bed and if Emma hasn't called her once she's done, she'll have to call the blonde herself.

Once in bed though, Regina decides she doesn't want to call the sheriff after all. A simple text should be enough; her excuse being that it's not safe for the woman to talk while driving anyway.

The mayor is halfway through typing a short message that tells the other woman that she's fine, when her phone rings. She grins at the name before she takes a deep breath and leans back casually in her bed.

"Miss Swan?" the brunette greets coolly even though her pulse has risen slightly.

"Jesus Regina, do you have any idea how worried I've been? Are you okay? Is Henry okay?"

"Everything is quite alright, no need to panic," the brunette replies sardonically.

"No need to-" Emma replies incredulously with a huff. "Regina, you haven't answered your phone for 6 hours. For all I know Cora could have left you to die somewhere or-" she can't get herself to say the words _'killed you'_ now that she's actually speaking to the other woman. Just the thought of not having Regina around to challenge her and drive her crazy is too incomprehensible.

"Right, because you could go away for a week without a word, but I can't go a few hours," the former mayor spits out, her anger flaring at the utter childishness of the sheriff.

"I'm sorry okay, I know I should have called you but-"

"You're damn right you should have," Regina hisses, cutting the blonde off. "You could have at least spared me enough thought to send a text. What kind of parent doesn't even let their son know she's okay for a whole week?"

It hurts. Because Emma can't deny the validity of the other woman's statement and it only makes her feel like she deserves Henry's easy affection even less. It's just that she hasn't had to think about anyone else but herself for a long time.

"Look, I'm sorry okay, I-"

"It's late Miss Swan. Henry is already asleep and I should be too. Someone has to take care of him after all," the former mayor cuts in and the blonde growls in frustration and anger.

"Regina, get out of your goddamn bed and open the door for me so we can talk. Or I _will_ pick the lock."

"You're outside?" the brunette asks surprised as she quickly throws off her duvet and moves to the window, searching for the other woman's yellow monstrosity and frowning when she doesn't spot it.

"Why don't you come and see for yourself? I'm freezing my ass off."


	15. Chapter 15

Rating: T.

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters and make no profit.

AN: All mistakes are mine, let me know how I'm doing?

* * *

Regina likes to pretend that she doesn't hurry downstairs to the door, but she knows it's a lie. She practically throws it open to find a shivering Emma Swan clutching her red leather jacket tightly around her half exposed throat and grinning sheepishly.

The brunette fights to keep her relief at the sheriff's appearance from showing, instead scowling at her attire that is really not suited for the cold Maine weather, and motions for her to get her ass inside.

"Miss Swan, you really should learn to dress yourself after the weather," she remarks snidely as she feels her own body release a shudder at the chilled wind that hits her when she closes the door. The blonde just rolls her eyes as she carelessly kicks off her boots and leans forward as if to kiss the other woman.

"Miss Swan!" Regina exclaims in shock and outrage as she quickly pulls away. The woman has been gone for a week and she dares just come here and try to do that? Especially when she knows Regina is mad at her?

"I missed you and I'm glad to be back," Emma responds sheepishly before she cants her head in a 'what are you gonna do about it?' kind of gesture.

The brunette purses her lips and crosses her arms in annoyance. "Need I remind you that it's late and I'm mad at you and it's highly inappropriate?"

"Not really," the woman replies with a disinterested shrug of her shoulders and Regina releases a huff at her blatant disregard of her _very_ valid points.

"Do you mind if I make a cup of coffee before you bite my head off? I'm freezing," the sheriff declares as she rubs her hands together and starts walking towards the kitchen.

With a growl, the brunette throws her hands slightly upwards in an 'I give up' before she storms after the other woman, slapping her hand away as she reaches for a cup to signal that she'll do it for her.

The last thing she wants right now is Emma Swan making a mess in her kitchen.

* * *

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Regina asks once she can't take the silence anymore, her voice hostile and annoyed. For the last few minutes, the blonde has been warming her hands on the cup of coffee she's been handed, sipping at it occasionally and letting out an appreciative sigh at the warmth and taste.

Emma releases a tired groan, wondering how the hell she can start a conversation that she knows is unlikely to end well. Best thing to do is probably to just jump right in and try to keep her head above the water.

"When we went to find Gold's son, I had a little, uh, run in with my past."

The former mayor raises her brows pointedly, telling her to get on with it.

"Try not to freak out okay? I ran into Henry's dad."

All in all, Emma is pretty impressed by how well Regina manages to mask her reaction to the words. The only indication that she has really heard it at all is the slight widening of her eyes and the way her jaw sets tightly.

The blonde tries to imagine all the things running through the other woman's head and guesses it's mostly about the possibility that Henry is about to be taken from her. She fights the urge to fidget as she waits for the brunette to say something.

"What's his name?" Regina finally asks and the sheriff is pretty sure that's _not at all_ what she expected to come out of the other woman's mouth.

"Um, Neal," she states awkwardly, biting her lip when silence once again falls around them.

"Does he know about Henry?" the former mayor questions, her voice surprisingly even and Emma shakes her head.

"I didn't tell him, but I kinda left him with Gold and if they suddenly decide to actually have a real conversation, I'm pretty sure they'll be able to put the pieces together."

Regina purses her lips in irritation before the words sink in and her brows furrow in confusion.

"What do you mean, you left him with Gold?"

The blonde winces despite her best efforts and looks down at her cup guiltily. "Well, that's where it gets kinda awkward. Turns out Neal is Gold's son."

The silence that follows is heavy and the sheriff doesn't dare lift her eyes to look at the other woman, knowing whatever is coming is not going to be good.

"WHAT?" Regina's voice booms and Emma jumps, almost losing her grip on the cup and spilling coffee.

"Is this a fucking joke?" the brunette seethes through clenched teeth, suddenly remembering that her son is asleep upstairs and hoping that her previous outburst hasn't woken him.

"I really wish it was."

"You let yourself get impregnated by _Rumpelstiltskin's_ son?" the former Queen spits out with disgust and Emma narrows her eyes in hurt and anger.

"Jeez, you could at least _try_ to not call me a whore. It's not like I knew," she spits back and she thinks the other woman's eyes soften for a moment before they flash darkly.

"I don't even know why I'm so surprised. I should have expected something like this," Regina mutters and it's clear it's meant more to herself than the blonde. But then dark eyes are boring into Emma's in anger and the sheriff can't help but swallow thickly as her heart leaps into her throat.

"If you think for a second that I will let you take Henry from me you'll have another thing coming. I have legal rights to him."

"What? Why would I do that?" Emma asks confused, not for the first time wondering how the hell the former mayor's mind works.

"I'm not gonna let you run off and play happy family with _my_ son," Regina grits out, her voice low and filled with contempt and threat.

"I'm sorry, did you just miss the part about me not being any more thrilled about this than you?" The blonde asks annoyed. The other woman can have such selective hearing sometimes. "Let me make myself perfectly clear. I'm _never_ getting back together with the guy who sent me to prison and broke my heart. I would be happy to never see or hear from him ever again."

The brunette crosses her arms defensively as she studies the other woman closely and Emma forces herself to not shy away from the intense gaze. She understands that the former mayor is assessing if she's telling the truth or not and deciding whether she should trust her words.

It feels like half an eternity, but finally, Regina leans back in her seat and relaxes slightly.

"It doesn't excuse why you didn't let me or Henry know you were fine," she says petulantly and Emma groans internally at the fact she's clearly not out of the woods yet.

"Mr. Gold made me spend all the days going through places and I just…I forgot."

"That's still not-"

"I know it's no excuse okay?" the sheriff replies exasperated, her voice rising slightly in irritation. "I'm just not used to having to think about others and I make mistakes. I'm not perfect so give me a goddamn break."

Regina looks taken aback by the blonde's outburst and the silence that follows is yet again filled with tension.

The brunette scoffs and gets up from her chair with gusto. "Fine, I'm sure I can find a way for you to make it up to me," she replies and Emma has the brief urge to strangle the frustrating woman.

"It's late and I'm sure you're tired so you should probably go home and get some sleep and we can talk more when you don't look like you're about to drop dead."

"Regina," the sheriff growls and they share a brief look, the former mayor's lips pursing ever so slightly in amusement at the way the other woman manages to look both angry and pleading at the same time.

"Fine. I guess you can use the guest bedroom," she says with a dramatic sigh, like offering will make her life more difficult, and Emma rolls her eyes as she gets up. "I don't want Henry to wake up and learn you killed yourself because you fell asleep behind the wheel."

The blonde is too tired -and secretly a little occupied enjoying the view of the other woman's behind before her as they walk up the stairs- to bother responding.

"Where is that old thing you call a car anyway?" Regina asks curiously, suddenly remembering that she didn't see it.

"It's at the station. We took Gold's car so I had to rent one to drive back since he stayed behind."

"Pity. I was hoping maybe it finally died," the brunette said with a smirk as the other woman shoots her an offended look.

Emma is fully content to trail behind the mayor so she can get into a soft bed and sleep forever, until they reach Henry's door.

Regina turns around confused when she doesn't hear footsteps behind her anymore and notices the way the blonde stares at the door to their son's room longingly. With a sigh, she turns and walks back to stand next to the woman.

"Can I…Can I see him?" the sheriff whispers, not liking her own pleading voice and holding her breath as she half expects the brunette to deny her request. Regina contemplates her options before nodding her assent and pushing the door open soundlessly.

Emma drinks in the sight of their son sleeping soundly in his bed, his face relaxed and untroubled as he snores lightly. She doesn't know how long she stands there staring at him greedily before a gentle hand on her shoulder makes her start.

The mayor motions for her to move away and the blonde glances one more time at the innocent boy, before she steps aside and watches Regina close the door quietly.

No words are exchanged as they walk silently the rest of the way to the guest room.

"Thank you," Emma says softly once she's opened the door and the brunette starts walking towards her own room.

Regina stops and slowly turns back to face the other woman, her face carefully blank.

"You're welcome. It wouldn't be right to keep you from seeing him. After all, you're his mother too."

A flicker of a grimace at the words is the only thing that prevents the blonde's anger from flaring at the words clearly meant to make her feel guilty.

"Goodnight," Emma replies coldly instead before disappearing inside the room. She's too tired to start yet another argument and she's done apologizing to the mayor for the day. She knows she made some shitty decisions and that it will probably take time before the brunette can let it go, but she needs to sleep before she can take on _that_ project.

* * *

Regina is out of bed before the alarm goes off, having flitted restlessly between sleep and awareness throughout the night.

Knowing that one Emma Swan is sleeping barely ten feet away from her makes her feel unbalanced because she's not sure if she's happy that she's back or angry that she made her worry and doubt herself when she was away.

Not to mention that they really need to start working on neutralizing her mother now that she's apparently here to stay. The longer she walks around free to do whatever she wants, the more likely it is that her plans will succeed. And there's no way that will end well for anyone in Storybrooke.

* * *

When Henry enters the kitchen and sits down in a chair to watch his mother make breakfast, he's glum and unenergetic. It's been a recurring theme the last few days when it became apparent there was no way of knowing if his birth mom would call or when she would be coming back.

And if there's one thing the former mayor dislikes, it's to see her son unhappy.

"So…A certain blonde came knocking on our door late last night," the brunette tells him as she walks to stand beside him and tries to smooth down his slightly mussed hair.

Henry tries to duck away from the gesture before the words register and he looks hopefully up at Regina.

"Emma's back?"

"Yes, I believe so. In fact, there might be a certain someone in our guest room that needs to be told breakfast is ready."

The brunette watches sadly as her son's whole demeanor changes, his face lighting up, as he takes off running. She grimaces at the stab of pain she feels at his reaction. He used to be like that with her when he was younger; before he got that hideous book and went looking for his birth mother.

She hopes with all her heart that maybe one day he will be like that towards her again.

* * *

Emma wakes groggily to the sound of running footsteps. As the door flies open, she instinctively pulls the duvet tighter around herself as a tiny body jumps into the bed.

"Emma, you're back!" Henry shouts excitedly and the blonde winces at the noise.

"Hey kid," she rasps, feeling awkward as he hugs her as best he can while she keeps a secure hold of the blanket wrapped around her.

"Mom said you had to get up. Breakfast is ready and you have to come eat with us," Henry says happily as he bounces on the bed.

"Okay, alright, I'm coming," the sheriff tells him with a smile, secretly enjoying her son's eagerness, even if she feels like she's barely gotten any rest.

She chuckles as he runs out of the room, no doubt to inform his other mom that he's been successful in getting her out of bed.

Emma gives herself a moment to enjoy the silence before she sighs and throws off the duvet so she can throw on her clothes, knowing Henry will come running back if she takes too long.

* * *

As soon as the blonde enters the kitchen, she's ushered into a seat by Henry who starts his inquisition immediately with questions like 'Where did you go?', 'What did you see?' and 'Why didn't you take me with you?'

The sheriff shifts uncomfortably in the chair while she tries her best to answer her son, glancing every now and then at Regina who's keeping her back turned resolutely so the other woman can't gauge her reactions.

It isn't until the boy asks the dreaded question of 'Why didn't you call me?' that the brunette turns around in interest to watch the deer in headlights look on Emma's face. Because how does one tell a kid kindly that you're used to only having to think about yourself without sounding selfish and mean?

"Well, okay, here's the thing kid," the sheriff starts awkwardly, uncomfortable with the twin sets of eyes that look expectantly at her. "I've been on my own most of my life and sometimes I forget that I have people I care about and people who care about me. So when things are crazy like they were in New York, it just sort of, slips my mind sometimes."

The blonde glances over at Regina who huffs silently, clearly unimpressed, before watching their son as he contemplates her and what she said; waiting for his reaction.

"It's okay, I forgive you."

Regina tries her best to push down the hurt and frustration she feels at how easily her son forgives the blonde. No matter what his birth mother does it seems, he always believes her and accepts her apologies. But no matter what she does, he always blames her and never trusts her. She's beginning to wonder if he ever will.

She's suffocating. She has to get away from them so she can compose herself. The anger and desperation is flowing through her veins, prickling her skin and making her fingers flex unconsciously as the magic starts bubbling inside her.

How can she ever hope to have any kind of normal and happy relationship with Emma and their son when she gets so angry and sad every time he chooses his birth mother over her?

"Regina, are you okay?"

The sheriff's concerned voice forces the former mayor to focus on the two other occupants of the room instead of the conflicting emotions swirling within herself. She looks quickly from the blonde's worried face to Henry's confused one and with an enormous strength of will, she poises herself under their scrutiny.

"I'm fine. I'm just going to put your lunch in your backpack and then we can eat," she tells them, keeping her gaze deliberately at her son the whole time and ignoring the frown she knows has appeared on Emma's face at the way her voice trembles slightly. Not enough for a child to notice, but the former bounty hunter has spent a year perfecting her ability to notice even the slightest thing out of the ordinary with the brunette and Regina has no doubt she heard it.

The former mayor retreats as quickly as she can from the kitchen without rousing her son's suspicion that something isn't right. Once she's out in the hallway, she finds herself leaning her head heavily against the wall as she tries to take deep, calm breaths and get her body back under control.

She jumps as a soft hand touches her shoulder and spins around to face an uncertain looking blonde.

"What's going on?" Emma questions tentatively, scowling when the brunette hurriedly pulls away from her hand and runs her hand nervously down the front of her black dress.

"I said I'm fine Miss Swan. It's nothing," Regina states harshly before turning around and bending down to place Henry's lunch in his backpack. She's annoyed, but not really surprised to see the sheriff still standing in front of her when she straightens and turns back.

"That wasn't nothing Regina," Emma says softly, pleading with her eyes for the other woman to tell her what's going on.

"When Henry's gone," the former mayor tells the blonde firmly before walking back into the kitchen, smiling at her son as she sits down. She's hoping maybe it will all be forgotten by the time they've eaten and gotten Henry off to school.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters and I make no profit.

AN: All mistakes are mine. I hope this isn't boring :P Also, will there be some fluff coming up next? I think maybe :P

* * *

Emma doesn't forget. As soon as Henry has gone on the bus, she looks expectantly over at the brunette and Regina sighs internally at the stubborn woman as they walk inside.

She deliberately stays silent as she walks into the kitchen and start cleaning off the table and she's a little surprised that the blonde actually offers to help her; no doubt to speed things up.

When they're done, Regina refills their coffees from breakfast and walks into the living room where she takes a seat. Emma sits down opposite her and tries to wait patiently for the other woman to start talking.

It doesn't take long before the blonde's right leg starts bumping up and down as she glares at the other woman sipping her coffee and intentionally ignoring her.

"Regina-" the sheriff whines and the brunette looks at her annoyed.

"What?"

"Tell me," Emma moans like an impatient kid and the former mayor huffs.

"What is there to tell," Regina says, trying to deflect and the other woman throws her a less than impressed look.

"How about why you looked like you didn't know whether to cry or punch someone?"

"Did I?" the brunette questions with feigned ignorance. Is that really how she had looked? She thought she had been able to hide it.

The blonde sighs. She understands better than most the need to be protective of one self, to appear unaffected and fine. But damn it she needs to know what she did to put that look of torture on the other woman's face so she can try to keep it from happening again.

"Regina, I just want to understand. What did I do to upset you that much?"

"You didn't _do_ anything," the brunette responds immediately, her anger flaring as she remembers how she felt earlier in the kitchen. "You don't know what it's like to raise your child for ten years and then suddenly he decides that he hates you and that you're evil and that whenever something bad happens it's your fault."

Regina hates the way her breath hitches as she fights to keep the tears from showing in her eyes. The last thing she wants is to appear weak before the sheriff. Hasn't the woman taken enough from her already?

"You're angry because he forgives me so easily, but won't do the same with you," Emma states in realization as she watches the brunette try to keep her composure. The former mayor glares darkly at her.

"I'm not angry Miss Swan, I'm hurt," the woman states harshly. "You gave him up and I've spent _years _caring for him, loving him. And then you just ride into town and take him from me without even trying."

"I'm not taking him from you Regina," the blonde rushes out wide eyed, but the former mayor ignores it.

"You abandoned him. You run away. You don't call him for a week. But he doesn't care. You can do no wrong by him. While I - no matter how hard I try, no matter what I do - will always just be _the Evil Queen."_

Before the sheriff can even open her mouth to respond to the woman's outburst, the brunette is up from the chair, disappearing into the kitchen.

Regina hates that she's so weak that she has to flee from the other woman's presence to keep her from seeing the tears she can no longer contain sliding down her cheeks. She leans one hand on the counter while the other wrap around herself protectively as she tries to keep her breathing slow and controlled so she doesn't completely crumble. She tries not to think about how much she just revealed to Henry's birth mother and how utterly _pathetic_ it makes her feel.

The former mayor jumps when arms wrap themselves protectively around her waist as a warm body molds against her back and a head rests against her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Emma murmurs. "I had no idea."

The brunette fights against the hold, but it's only half-hearted, and a part of her is relieved when the other woman just squeezes tighter, signaling that she's not letting go no matter how inappropriate or uncomfortable Regina thinks it is. She's so tired of fighting, of appearing strong and indifferent. She _wants_ someone that she can be inperfect with, someone that will hold her and reassure her and not think any less of her for it.

"You're right," the sheriff says softly when the woman in her arms eventually stills in her hold. "No one can say you're not his mom and it's not okay for him to treat you like that. But you have to remember that he's just a kid and I'm new and exciting. It'll pass. It's not like I'm exactly perfect. Sooner or later I'll do something totally wrong and he'll throw a tantrum and say he hates me."

Emma smiles at the snort of agreement from the brunette.

"You're a great mom Regina; no one can deny you that. He'll come around."

The blonde is slightly startled when the other woman suddenly turns in her hold, making her acutely aware of their close proximity as she can feel the former mayor's breath against her own lips.

"Why are you trying to make me feel better?"

The look in Regina's eyes is one of genuine wonder and curiosity, and the sheriff feels a stab of sadness at how it's so painfully obvious when she really looks that the other woman is not used to people ever being there for her.

"Because no matter what you think, I'm _not_ trying to take Henry away from you."

Emma notices how the brunette's eyes trail down to her lips then and she wets them unconsciously as she lets her own trail down to focus on the tempting ones so close to her own.

And then they're kissing and she doesn't know who initiated it, but their lips move hungrily as tongues clash hastily and she can feel the moan she releases all the way from the back of her throat at the delicious feelings sharing wet, heady kisses with the other woman invokes.

Regina is the one to eventually break away, their breathing ragged and brushing against the other's lips as it's released.

"I need to talk to you. And I'm still mad at you."

Emma groans as her mind jumps back to last night's awkward and not all sucessful conversation. "Look, I know I screwed up, but I'll find a way to make it up to you okay?"

Regina looks at her amused. "I'm sure you will, however that's not what I need to talk to you about."

"Oh," the blonde replies, embarrassed that, like so many times before, she's managed to jump to the wrong conclusion again. It seems to be a common theme with her when it comes to the former mayor. She should probably have learned by now that the woman is like none other she's ever encountered and none of the usual rules seem to apply with her.

"It's about my mother," the brunette supplies and when she tries to break out of Emma's hold again, the woman lets her.

The sheriff turns around to face Regina and leans her weight against the counter.

"She wants to get Gold's dagger so she can control him – or possibly take his powers – and we can't let that happen."

"Dagger? What dagger? What does it do?"

"Rumpel is The Dark One. All his powers come from a dagger and the one who controls the dagger, controls him," Regina explains hastily, watching as the other woman's eyes widen at the realization of how disastrous it would be if Cora got her hands on it.

"Where is it?"

"I don't know. Rumpelstiltskin has it hidden somewhere to keep anyone from finding it and control him. That's why I need your help."

Emma looks at the brunette incredulously. "I doubt he'll just hand it over to me."

The former mayor shoots the blonde a look that says 'duh', except in a much more sophisticated and polite way. The blonde has always wondered how Regina manages such looks.

"I need you to talk to your parents. I'm pretty sure between the three of you, you can convince him to let you take it for safe-keeping."

The sheriff cocks a brow knowingly at the other woman. Of course she has to be the one to explain it to her parents. The moment they hear of Regina's involvement they'll argue that it's too dangerous, that it's a trick. They, like so many others in this town, only see the Evil Queen, not the woman the brunette has been for the last 10 years.

The former mayor stopped thinking about revenge when Henry was brought into her arms. Well, mostly. She could enjoy others' misery as much as she wanted so long as she didn't work actively to cause said misery.

"You know how hard it's going to be to persuade them right?"

Regina huffs in annoyance. "I don't need them persuaded, I just need them to make sure the dagger won't get into my mother's possession."

"Okay," the sheriff responds with a small smile and if the brunette is surprised at how easily she agreed, she doesn't show it.

They go silent after that, looking at each other somewhat awkwardly. Emma's mind flashes back to their heated make-out session earlier and she feels her temperature rising slightly as she considers walking over to the woman and doing it again.

She's startled out of her daydream at the clearing of a throat and her eyes refocus on the other woman.

"Shouldn't you call your parents or go visit them?" Regina asks pointedly and the blonde grins at the random thought that flits into her mind.

"Let me take you out to dinner."

The question is so far out of left field that the former mayor's face for a moment actually goes slack with surprise. "Excuse me?" she blurts and the way she so obviously falters gives the other woman confidence.

"Yeah, let me start to make up for my shitty behavior by treating you to dinner," the sheriff drawls comfortably and Regina looks at her incredulously.

"Cora is out there doing God knows what and you want us to go on a _date_?"

Emma frowns at the brunette's apparent unwillingness. "Look, I'll get Snow to convince Gold he has to tell us where the dagger is, but I doubt he's gonna do so willingly. So while we wait, why not try to do something nice and normal?"

Regina gives the other woman a look that says they've never done nice and normal, and the blonde kinda has to agree with that. But that's all the more reason to try.

"Oh come on," she groans, not liking how hard it is to persuade the former mayor. "What can we do right now but wait anyway?"

The brunette opens her mouth to argue, but realizes that she can't. She grumbles at the knowledge she has to depend on someone else and huffs annoyed at the pleased grin Emma adapts.

"Is that a yes?" the sheriff asks and Regina rolls her eyes at the other woman's childish glee.

"Fine, but Henry has to stay with Snow and Charming where I know he'll be safe."

Emma nods vigorously in agreement, unable to contain her satisfied grin.

* * *

"No, absolutely not!" Snow exclaims and the blonde winces. "It could be a trick. Regina could be working with Cora or she could want it for herself or-"

"Oh come on," Emma whines, annoyed at how the other woman always assumes the worst when it comes to the former mayor. She thought getting her mother to watch Henry without letting her know she was going to be spending the evening with Regina would be hard, but the woman had agreed surprisingly easy. Apparently, telling her about Cora and her quest for the dagger and how they had to find it before her was a much harder topic.

"Regina has done nothing but try to prove she's changing. She saved us when she could have let us die," the blonde reminds the dark haired woman.

"That doesn't mean she can't fall back Emma. Power is a very dangerous temptation."

The sheriff sighs at the not invalid points. But if the brunette really did want the dagger for herself, then surely she wouldn't have told Emma to help her? At the very least she would have hinted that they should give her the dagger once they procure it, but the woman had made no inclination to that. In fact, the former mayor had looked more like she didn't want anything to do with the dagger.

"She doesn't want to be near the dagger. She wants us to keep it safe," Emma tells her mother. It's not really lying since it was implied when she talked to Regina before she left to talk to her parents.

Snow looks at her daughter skeptically, searching for a lie, but finds no indication that it is, and so she releases a wary sigh.

"If Cora gets her hands on it-" the blonde states, letting the words linger in the air between them.

"I know, I know, it'll be disastrous," Snow completes, knowing she really has no choice in the matter. "We'll try our best."

When Emma walks out of the apartment to the feel of the sun trying to warm her skin, she feels light, almost happy. Sure her life is as messed up as ever and there is danger looming on the horizon. But for the moment there's peace and she has a date with a hot mom.

She smiles as she pulls out her phone, dials, and waits for the other end to be picked up.

"Hey, I need a favor."


	17. Chapter 17 - A Date Part 1

AN: Part 1 of a little downtime for our girls. Hope it's not too disappointing. All mistakes are my own and a big thank you to all followers and reviewers and favoriters (hmm, is that even a word!)

* * *

When the doorbell rings, Regina is surprised to see the blonde standing with her arms full of bags.

"I thought I told you to dress casual," Emma says with pretend sternness as her eyes roam greedily over the other woman. The dress is maroon and form-fitting, showing of the woman's impeccable body and stopping just above her knees. The dip of the neck is just low enough to show off cleavage, but not so low that it looks improper.

"This _is_ casual," the brunette replies, her eyes moving to look herself over self-consciously as she frowns slightly. "Do I not look okay?" She thought choosing one of her dresses with color would give the right impression, not the one of poised mayor that the grey or black ones do.

"What, no, you look great," Emma blurts quickly, desperate to not ruin the night before it can even get started. She's relieved when the woman gives her a shy - wait, Regina Mills does shy? - smile and smoothes her hands down over the dress.

"I guess I was just expecting something more along the lines of…well, me," she finishes with an embarrassed shrug as she wonders why she would even think that. When has she ever seen the former mayor look anything other than like a model?

Regina raises her brows as she looks the blonde over and Emma bites her lip nervously at being studied.

Originally, she had put on one of the two dresses that she owns. But she had felt weird in it, almost uncomfortable, and there's no way she would be able to appear relaxed and cool if all she could think about was how she missed being in pants.

So she had slipped into a tight pair of jeans and gone for one of her few 'nicer, sophisticated' white shirts. It shapes itself loosely around her body and is half see-through and in her need to rebel she has chosen a nice black bra and left three buttons open. She has given her hair a little extra curl to accentuate the look of falling golden locks.

All in all she feels pretty damn good. And if the slight tug at the corners of the other woman's lips is any indication, Regina thinks so too.

"You do look very…titillating," the brunette purrs and Emma feels her knees go weak. "What's in the bags?"

The blonde looks down confused, having forgotten all about them as they sized each other up. Oh right, those bags.

"It's dinner. And stuff," she replies with a goofy smile as Regina scrunches her nose in disbelief.

"I thought you said you would take me out?" she asks, sounding thoroughly unimpressed.

"I was. But then I realized that I'm a kinda private person and you're a kinda private person and you probably don't want to go out in public when there's half a town that hates you, so I figured I'd set up something here instead," the sheriff explains quickly, hoping she hasn't completely misjudged the other woman and made things even worse for herself.

The former mayor fails to hide her slightly impressed look at the thought put into this before she carefully schools her features and moves aside for the woman to enter.

"Actually, I think it's pretty much the whole town," she replies as Emma steps inside and they share a smile of rueful amusement.

The blonde banishes Regina to her study with a glass of wine as she sets up shop in the kitchen and the former mayor indulges her with fake skepticism. She's actually a little bit intrigued and curious about what the former bounty hunter can whip up; if she's really capable of doing something stereotypically romantic.

* * *

It takes roughly fifteen minutes before Emma pops her head into the study and tells her she can get seated in the living room. The brunette follows obediently, only to stop for a moment in wonder as she looks at the table.

It's nothing too extravagant, just a nice table linen, some candles and a single rose on the platter meant for the former mayor. It's the fact it's done for _her_ that throws her. When is the last time anyone did something like this for her without any ulterior motive or expectation?

Regina starts to smile before a thought occurs to her and she feels her stomach drop. The sheriff _is _probably expecting something. You don't go on dates without anticipating _something_ right? At the very least she's going to be expecting kissing is she not? What if she's thinking of more? What if the blonde believes they're going to end up in bed?

"Are you okay?" Emma asks, drawing the brunette from her internal monologue and when their eyes lock, there's concern in the sheriff's eyes.

"Yes, I'm fine." No, she's not fine. She's panicking, freaking out. She's not ready for this. The other woman seems to realize this as well because she takes a worried step closer to the former mayor, frowning when Regina automatically takes a step back.

"Regina, what-"

"I'm not going to sleep with you just because you're making me dinner and have set a romantic table," the brunette blurts out, clasping her hand over her mouth in horror at her less than proper outburst. How does the blonde manage to always get under her skin and make her forget the etiquette fed to her through countless painful hours with her mother?

_Never show weakness. People will prey on it and destroy you._ The voice in her head sounds an awful lot like Cora's.

"Um, I wasn't really expecting you to," Emma states awkwardly, wide eyed, hands fiddling nervously. She finds herself wondering yet again how the other woman reaches these conclusions from every little thing she does.

She studies the former mayor intently; the way her whole stance is rigid and her eyes flitting around the room uncomfortably. "Regina," the blonde says firmly, watching as brown eyes snap to her own immediately. "When is the last time someone did anything for you without expecting something in return?"

The brunette gives a half-shrug and that's all the answer Emma needs. She chances another step towards the woman, feeling her frustration grow as the former mayor follows her move to maintain a safe distance between them.

"Look, I'm not – I don't want anything from you okay?" the sheriff states, running a hand haphazardly through her hair and blowing a wayward strand away from her eyes. "Except maybe, hoping you'll not have a completely horrible time with me," she adds with a sheepish smile that she hopes will calm the other woman down.

It works at least partially as she receives a small upturning of lips and Regina's posture relaxes slightly.

"What's for dinner?" the brunette asks as she starts walking again and it's clear whatever just happened should be forgotten. Emma only hesitates for a moment before she spins and jogs after the woman so she can pull her chair out.

Regina smiles in appreciation of the gesture and the blonde feels herself grow warm again. "You'll see soon enough. I'll be right back," she supplies before disappearing quickly into the kitchen.

Once she's there, she takes a deep breath to calm herself as she does a mental slap and tells herself to focus. She needs to act cool.

* * *

"This is delicious," Regina says politely between bites. The blonde has served them pasta with chicken and some sort of creamed sauce and it is really quite good even if she's convinced she could have made it even better herself.

"You'll have to forgive that I find it hard to believe you made this though," the brunette adds with a smirk as she thinks of Henry's exclamation of his birth mom being a hazard in the kitchen. Emma grins at her sheepishly.

"Ruby enlisted Granny for me."

"Probably wise," Regina replies with a chuckle, not really surprised. "I've heard tales of the dangers of you and cooking."

Emma scowls in mock offense. "Hey, I'm not _that_ bad. I just need to keep it simple and it's all good."

The former mayor smirks in amusement. "If you say so dear."

The blonde juts out her lower lip in a pout before grinning at the other woman who takes a sip of her wine to hide her own smile as Emma looks knowingly at her.

* * *

"I will admit that so far I'm mildly impressed," Regina states once she's done eating. It's been a long time since anyone served her and not the other way around and so far the conversations have been entertaining and playful.

"Yeah? So not too bad for a first date so far?" The blonde asks a little nervously, hoping the other woman doesn't notice.

"Not so far, no," the former mayor supplies with a brief smile. "Although my experience is fairly limited." She scolds herself internally for letting that slip as she glances over at the slightly surprised look on the sheriff's face.

"Oh? How limited?" Emma asks, trying and failing to hide her curiosity.

"Limited," Regina states cryptically, hoping the other woman will let it go. But of course she doesn't.

"So what, like three? Five? Ten?"

"Does it matter?" the brunette asks, her voice falling to a slightly lower register in annoyance and defensiveness.

"No, but isn't the whole point of a date to have fun and get to know one another?" Emma replies with an innocent grin and the former mayor releases a silent breath of disbelief at the woman.

If that's how she wants to play, then fine. "Tell me then, Miss Swan. How many dates have _you_ been on?"

The blonde wrinkles her nose slightly at the use of the formal title, but she isn't really all that surprised. It never seems to take much to make Regina defensive and she's known from the get-go that trying to build something deeper with the former mayor will mean giving just as much of herself as she wishes to receive. The woman is protective of herself - something she of all people can understand - but the former bounty hunter has aquired the habit of jumping in face first, handling things as they come, so why stop now?

"I don't know, maybe a dozen? None have been particularly successful. Apparently, there are a lot of jerks in the world," Emma replies with a shrug, watching the brunette nod her head in a sort of agreement.

Silence falls between them.

"And you?" the blonde prods when it becomes clear the other woman isn't planning on speaking anytime soon. She watches Regina sip her wine carefully before answering.

"One."

The sheriff's eyes widen in surprise and her mouth goes slack. "That's it? Seriously?"

The brunette's eyes darken as she fixes the other woman with an angry glare. She opens her mouth to retort, but Emma beats her to it. "How is that even possible? You're beautiful. People should be tripping over their feet trying to get to you."

"Just because one is considered pretty it does not mean anyone will bother courting you," Regina shoots back, not bothering to conceal a huff as her anger dies down to hurt pride instead. She thought the woman was making fun of her inexperience.

For a moment, Emma opens her mouth to argue, but then thinks better of it. It's probably smart to not press a subject that so obviously aggravates the other woman when they're supposed to have a good time.

"So who took you?" she questions instead, her curiosity keeping her from compltetely dropping the subject.

For a long moment, Regina's eyes lose focus as she thinks back.

"Daniel," she whispers before clearing her throat to force down her emotions as she takes another sip of her wine, missing the way the other woman's eyes widen.

Regina hasn't been on a date for over 30 years? She wants to ask why Graham never took her. He seemed link the kind of guy who would. She fights the urge though; afraid it will ruin the relatively peaceful atmosphere they've managed to maintain so far tonight.

"The food was very good," the former mayor states as she pushes her chair away and stands.

"Wait, where are you going?" Emma asks panicked, sure she's upset the other woman somehow and ruined the evening.

"Just to the bathroom dear," Regina replies with a knowing smirk. She looks thoughtfully at the blonde for a moment before adopting a sly smile and the sheriff frowns as the woman makes her way over to her.

Before Emma can question what's going on, the brunette has bent down to press her lips against hers.

"Thank you," Regina says as she straightens and gracefully glides past the seated woman, deliberately putting a little extra sway in her hips.

Once the former mayor is out of sight, the blonde releases a breath she didn't even realize she was holding as her face adopts a goofy smile, not even caring that she has no idea what the other woman thanked her for. All she knows is it's a good thing she's sitting down because her knees are feeling weak again.


	18. Chapter 18 - A Date Part 2

AN: So here is part 2 of the date, slightly rushed so I hope there's not too many mistakes, but damn, any other writers know how tired you get of reading the same thing over ten times to make sure it's as perfect as it can be right?  
Mostly fluff in this one, but chaos will be back in the next chapter :P Let me know what you think?

* * *

She's having a minor crisis. After all, it's not normal to want to be close to your son's birth mother who has tried to take your son away not to mension she is the Savior who broke your curse and any chance of a happy ending right?

But then Emma had told her she never wanted to take Henry away and the curse _didn't_ make her happy. She has nothing now, so what does she stand to lose by giving the woman a chance?

Well, what little is left of her heart and sanity that's what. If she trusts in Emma Swan and the blonde turns out to be playing her, she'll be completely and utterly broken, _that_ she's convinced of.

But isn't she broken already? Does it matter either way? It's not like she has anything left and if the sheriff does end up hurting her, she can just…disappear right? It's not going to be hard to goad someone into ending her misery. All she has to do is pretend to be the Evil Queen again and they'll be lining up to save the people from her 'cruelty'.

Regina lets out a quiet snort at her own thoughts. God, she's so done with these pathetic people and their holier than thou beliefs. Emma Swan is different though. From the moment she walked across the town line she challenged her. But what really made her pay attention to the woman was the fact she knew that the world wasn't black and white. The blonde both saw and were a big shade of grey; unlike those naïve, mindless fairytale characters.

The brunette looks herself over in the mirror to make sure she's still looking impeccable, before she takes a deep, steadying breath and unlocks the bathroom door.

Yes, she thinks it might be okay to take a chance on her son's birth mother.

* * *

When she enters the dining room, their food has been cleared away and Emma is fidgeting nervously in her seat. She quickly stands when she sees the former mayor and tries to give a calm smile, but probably ends up with what looks like an uncertain one.

"Everything okay?" she asks, and they both ignore the slight panic tingeing her voice.

"Everything is fine," Regina replies with a genuine smile, her hand touching a shoulder briefly as she passes the other woman, hoping it will show that there's no need for the sheriff to worry.

The blonde exhales as discreetly as she can as she straightens her posture in relief, her confidence returning as the other woman takes her seat once again.

"Ready for dessert?" she asks with a wide grin, watching the brunette's eyes glinting back at her with mischief as her lips take on an unmistakable smirk.

"What do you have to offer," Regina drawls sensually as she lets her eyes roam over the other woman's body in clear indication of just what she's asking and the sheriff feels herself heat up instantly.

"I, uh-" she tries, clearing her throat and cursing the flush she knows is visible as the other woman has once again managed to catch her off guard. The former mayor laughs, loud and rich, the sound filled with mirth, and the blonde bites her lip at the way her heart flutters. She's not sure she's ever heard Regina laugh that genuinely before and it's…beautiful.

"You have a beautiful laugh," she says when the brunette stops and their eyes lock. The former mayor gives a crooked, slightly unsure smile, like she thinks the other woman has lost her mind.

"What?"

"You should laugh like that more often. It sounds good on you," Emma elaborates, her hands disappearing inside her jean pockets self-consciously as she looks away for a moment, missing the brief flash of a frown on the other woman's face.

"Thank you," Regina replies with a small smile, deliberately choosing to not tell the sheriff that it's been a long time since she's had any reason to laugh like that. It would only dampen the mood and she's pretty sure that's not how a date is supposed to work, even with her limited knowledge.

The blonde smiles back shyly, shuffling her feet awkwardly, before she remembers what she was supposed to do.

"Dessert! I'll be right back," she exclaims, making a hasty retreat into the kitchen that makes the other woman grin wide.

When Emma returns, the brunette looks confused when the woman only brings back one plate. She frowns when the blonde puts it down next to her and plops down in the chair right beside her.

Regina looks down at the plate - apple pie with scoops of vanilla ice-cream - before raising her brows in a silent question. The sheriff just smiles as she turns her chair to face the other woman and uses the fork she brought to take a small piece of the goodness on the plate and hold it up to the former mayor.

"What are you doing?" Regina asks suspiciously, trying to ignore the delicious smell of the apple pie.

"I'm feeding you."

"I'm not a baby," she replies with an offended scowl, sitting as far back in her seat as she can in protest to the other woman's ridiculousness. Emma sighs.

"Thank God you're not," the sheriff replies setting the fork down on the plate, knowing she'll have to explain her actions before she can proceed. If the woman will even let her.

"It's kind of a thing on dates. You feed each other and overdo the moans of appreciation at the taste and tease each other," she clarifies, suddenly regretting her decision for this stupid, cheesy cliché and wishing she could go back and change it to avoid making a total ass of herself.

"Oh," Regina replies, feeling silly for her defensive reaction and slightly bad for making Emma so obviously uncomfortable with it. Even if she doesn't really understand the point of this, she guesses the gesture is kind of sweet. She leans forward and raises her brows pointedly, glad when the blonde takes the hint and quickly takes the fork and lifts it again.

She feels a little awkward when Emma moves the fork forwards and she opens her mouth to take the dessert. This is not a way of flirting that she's accustomed to, but she doesn't miss the way the sheriff's eyes are trained closely at her lips as they wrap around the fork, and she finds she could actually end up enjoying this little game.

She closes her eyes briefly as she takes in the mixture of the cold ice-cream and the warmed pie, enjoying the combined flavor. Once she's swallowed, she gives the other woman her best puppy eyes and purses her lips.

"Another?" she inquires innocently, forcing herself to keep the smirk away as the blonde fumbles slightly before taking another piece of the dessert on the fork.

This time when Emma moves to feed her, she wraps her lips more slowly around the fork, letting her eyes flutter closed as she takes the offered dessert more slowly, releasing the fork without hurry and letting a small moan of appreciation rumble from her throat.

When she swallows and opens her eyes, she finds the other woman staring at her with parted lips. "One more?"

She watches with delight as the sheriff scrambles to get another piece of the treat ready, her hand not entirely steady when she presents the fork once again. This time, Regina releases a real moan when her lips wrap around the pie and ice-cream, not wanting to derive the blonde of the full experience. The hand with the fork trembles and the brunette quickly wraps her hand around the other woman's to keep her from dropping it as Emma swallows thickly and bites her lip to keep any sound from escaping at the raw sensuality of the former mayor.

The sheriff pays little mind when Regina takes the fork from her until the utensil is brought up to the mouth she's watching so closely and a tongue moves out to lick it clean. The blonde's breathing hitches and she mumbles something that sounds a lot like 'fuck me' as she slumps back in her seat and tries to keep from imagining what other things that tongue can lick.

The former mayor smiles in amusement at the dazed look on her date's face before she moves to pick up her own helping of apple pie and ice-cream on the fork. She presents it to the other woman and watches as Emma looks at the offered dessert confused.

"Your turn," the brunette offers, finding the widening of green eyes hilarious.

"That's not – I don't need to-" the sheriff blabbers, pouting when the other woman grins wide at her obvious discomfort.

"Come now, Miss Swan. All that fuss and you're going to back out?" Regina challenges, knowing it will get the woman to do what she wants.

The blonde narrows her eyes at the other woman as her face sets in a petulant frown. It's not that she's opposed to the thing, or that she expected the whole dessert ordeal to only go one way, but how in the hell can she top something like _that?_ Unlike the former mayor she's not graceful and sensual. And to even attempt to be would probably end in disaster and mocking from the other woman at her poor attempts at being seductive.

Deciding that it's probably best to just get it over with, Emma quickly leans forward and takes the offered bite, chewing only twice before swallowing it down.

"Happy now?" she asks begrudgingly, watching the other woman give her an all too knowing look and forking up another mouthful.

"Almost," Regina responds as she holds out the cutlery again. "Why don't you try savoring the taste?" She offers in a voice filled with as little mockery and condescension as she can manage. "Let the ice-cream melt on your tongue and feel the pie crumble in your mouth. It really is quite good."

The brunette is delighted when Emma leans forward more slowly this time, her lips wrapping around the fork and taking her time to really taste the dessert she brought with her. She has to admit that the other woman is right as she swallows. It really is quite a good pie.

When the sheriff looks back at Regina, the woman is grinning and looking entirely too smug so the blonde decides she needs to get them back to more even ground.

"You're right, it's not bad. I can think of something even better though," she states as she rises from her chair and steps in front of the other woman.

"Oh?" the former mayor challenges, looking up at her as she wonders if Emma is going to follow through with what she thinks – and maybe silently hopes – she will do.

In a move that's entirely a spur of the moment thing and with an unexpected amount of grace from the usually clumsy blonde, Emma moves one leg over the brunette's lap and squeezes herself between the table and the woman in the chair, settling in her lap.

There's a brief look of surprise and disbelief on Regina's face, before her eyes gleam hungrily as they seem to grow a shade darker and travel to pink lips close to her own.

The sheriff hums her agreement before closing the gap between them.

Emma isn't sure what exactly she expected from this, but she knows she's a little surprised at how tentative the brunette is. Regina is obviously letting her dictate the pace, letting her control the kiss, and it's not something the blonde would think of the other woman. The former mayor has always come across as controlling, passionate, and demanding. And so that's what she thought kissing her would be like too. Like that time before she left for New York with Gold; hurried and needy.

As she tugs on Regina's bottom lip and soothes it with her tongue, she finds she doesn't really mind this version of the woman either. She smiles when she pushes her tongue questioningly against lips and they part in answer to allow her inside. Emma moves her hands to cup the brunette's cheeks as she deepens their kiss, delighted when she feels the woman's tongue meet her own and tangle teasingly with it. One of Regina's hands find their way into her blonde tresses and tugs just enough to send tingles of pleasure down her spine, and the former mayor swallows the moan the blonde emits as she sucks at the probing tongue briefly before letting the woman continue her exploration.

Emma is very aware of the brunette's other hand as it moves down to her hip and fingers trail just under the hem of her shirt to settle against her lower back, pressing them impossibly closer together. She has to fight with everything she has to not give in to her sudden need to buck against the woman under her. The sheriff knows dry humping Regina like a teenage boy is not going to score points with her date. But really, who can blame her? It's been a while since she got any action and the woman is so damn beautiful and so very good at what she's doing.

With great regret, Emma manages to tear her lips and tongue away from the ones in front of her, and their eyes lock in a lustful stare as they both try to catch their breaths. The blonde chooses to ignore the look of disappointment Regina sends her when she stands, the act of getting off the woman far harder than it was to get on as she almost loses her balance and ends up looking ridiculous as she's forced to hop twice on her right foot to get away without falling.

"Mmm, definitely better," she says as she makes a show of licking her lips and tries to ignore her less than graceful journey from the other woman's enticing lap and the smug grin on said woman's lips.

"It's getting late, I should probably head home," the sheriff adds once she feels she's managed to calm herself enough to not look and sound like kissing Regina is making her melt like pudding.

"You're not staying?" the brunette inquires surprised. She had assumed that the woman would just stay in her guest bedroom again.

"It's been a great evening, I don't want to crowd you," Emma replies with a half shrug and the former mayor goes to argue before deciding against it. She _is_ feeling a little off balance and having the woman who is the cause of it so close won't give her time to process all that's happening and what she's feeling.

"You're probably right," she concedes, rolling her eyes at the shocked look on the blonde's face before said woman smiles smugly.

"I'm sorry, did you just agree with me on something Madame Mayor?" Emma teases and the other woman huffs.

"That's EX-Mayor and don't be so surprised. Even you are bound to get lucky every once in a while Sheriff Swan."

The blonde grins as she bends down to press her lips against the frowning woman's, laughing between kisses when Regina tries, unsuccessfully, to wipe the smirk of Emma's face. When they pull apart, the brunette pretends to pout and the other woman just continues to grin.

"Careful Sheriff, or people might start to wonder why you're not wearing that infamous scowl of yours anymore."

Emma takes the quip in stride as she sees the way the former mayor's eyes sparkle up at her, indicating it's not meant to be taken seriously.

"Let me just put everything away and I'll be out of your hair," she replies as she moves to take the more or less empty plate of dessert, only to be stopped by a gentle hand as Regina stands too.

"I'll get it. You've done enough and I'm sure you're tired."

The blonde raises her eyebrows skeptically at the excuse and the other woman shrugs innocently.

"I need to make sure you haven't ruined my kitchen anyway," the former mayor adds with a smirk, enjoying how the sheriff sticks her tongue out at her at the playful jab. She shoos the woman towards the hallway before following after her.

* * *

"So now we're at the awkward part of the date," Emma says with a sigh as she stands in the hallway with her boots and jacket on. "This is where I debate if I should kiss you or if it will just be weird."

Regina smirks at the way the blonde shuffles her feet and has her hands stowed away in her pockets, avoiding her gaze and generally just looking uncomfortable. She decides to give the woman a break and make the move for her.

The brunette takes two steps forward so she's close to the sheriff before she grabs the lapels of her blue leather jacket and tugs her closer, connecting their lips gently, but firmly.

"Thank you. I had a great evening," she tells Emma when they break apart and they smile at each other.

"Me too," the blonde confirms a little shyly before she turns, unlocks and opens the door.

"Just so you know," Regina calls once the woman has taken a few steps down her pathway. "You cheated."

The sheriff spins back around with a confused look on her face.

"Even though your intentions were noble, you said you'd take me out. So setting everything up in my home was cheating," she explains with satisfaction. "That means you owe me."

Emma crosses her arms and pretends to look offended, but she can't keep the grin off her face. "I guess we'll just have to have another date then," she replies happily before waving her goodbye at the other woman. She forces herself to not look back over her shoulder and keep walking.

Regina watches the blonde walk away with a pleased smirk before she closes the door and lets out a content sigh.


	19. Chapter 19

Regina is secretly impressed with herself when she manages to actually get all ready for bed before the panic sets in. She's mostly been in a daze, smiling to herself while she undressed and trying to scold herself for the happy twinkle in her eyes that haven't been there for 35 years when she brushed her teeth. It isn't until she slides under her covers and turns off the bedside lamp, making the room fall into total darkness, that the uncertainty overwhelms her. She fumbles slightly to get the light back on, looking around her room frantically, but not really paying attention to any of the details.

She just had a date with Emma Swan. She had a good time and she fells almost…happy. And her mother is out there somewhere, in Storybrooke. Her heart doubles its pace as she scrambles to reach her phone on the bedside table, fumbling for a moment in her panic before she finds the blonde's number.

It feels like an eternity, but in reality it picks up on the third ring.

"Madame Mayor, it's barely been an hour. I know I'm great company, but you should be more careful or someone might think you're starting to miss me."

Regina releases a relieved breath at the sheriff's playful exaggeration and for a moment she almost releases the chuckle making its way up her throat before she remembers why she called and her amusement ends up being a painful lump inside her constricting vocal chords.

"Are you home?" she questions, hoping the other woman doesn't pick up on the way her voice wavers ever so slightly.

"If by home you mean _have I managed to make my way back to my temporary place at Granny's_, then yes," Emma replies, grinning into her phone. It drops into a frown at the other woman's rushed reply.

"I need you to get back here."

"What, why, what's wrong?" the blonde asks, already moving to pick up her keys and jacket that she tossed in the one old, worn chair the room has when she came in.

"I haven't put up wards around your room and Cora…You need to come here or go to your parents," Regina explains hastily and the sheriff doesn't fail to notice the barely concealed fear in her voice. She can't help but feel that the woman is over-reacting though. Surely, Cora has better things to do at night, like sleeping, than trying to come for her?

"Regina, I doubt your mom is gonna-" Emma releases a surprised scream and jumps back at the cloud of purple smoke suddenly appearing in front of her, and she quickly adopts a defensive stance as her heart threatens to jump out of her chest.

"What the actual fuck!" she exclaims angrily when she realizes it's not Cora, but her daughter that has materialized and is standing in front of her in purple silk pajamas.

"I need to get you to safety," Regina says, ignoring the other woman's protests as she grabs hold of one of the blonde's flailing arms and yanks her unceremoniously towards herself. Emma stumbles and releases a string of expletives before she finds her footing and pushes herself away from the brunette. Her mouth drops slightly as she takes in the surrounding foyer she's now standing in.

"Did you just-" she asks dumbly, spinning left, then right, before rounding on the former mayor angrily.

"What the fuck Regina? You can't just use magic to show up and, and _abduct_ me," she exclaims loudly, watching the other woman flinch before composing herself.

"I had to make sure you were okay. There wasn't time-" the brunette starts to explain hastily, hoping to get the sheriff to calm down.

"I wasn't in any danger. You're freaking paranoid!" Emma interrupts with a cry, throwing up her hands in exasperation.

"You don't understand, my mother-"

"You're damn right I don't understand," the blonde yells frustrated, angry at the woman for scaring her. "Because you never tell me anything and I always have to guess and-"

"I'm trying to tell you if you'd stop yelling for a minute and let me talk," Regina cries and the sheriff actually closes her mouth and goes silent, surprised at the usually composed woman's outburst.

For long moments they stand scowling at each other before Emma huffs in defeat. "Fine, explain," she demands impatiently and the brunette's whole face grows hard and emotionless.

"Not until you calm down so we can have a real conversation and I believe you'll actually listen."

Emma releases a frustrated, angry scream as she stomps away from the former mayor and disappears into the kitchen, muttering words the brunette hopes the woman keeps from using in her son's presence.

* * *

When the sheriff walks into the living room a while later, she finds Regina sitting patiently – that has to be something new – in a chair, nursing a drink; no doubt her famous cider.

"I hope you've cleaned up after yourself," the brunette states as she looks at the bowl Emma sets down on the table and wrinkles her nose in disdain. It's a mixture of left-over apple pie, ice-cream with different flavors, fruits and berries, and chips. It's clear that the blonde has basically raided and gone through her entire kitchen in her fit. It's childish and rude and absolutely something Regina imagines Emma Swan capable of.

"What do you think?" the sheriff replies stubbornly, sarcasm lacing her tone and the former mayor sighs in annoyance.

"I think you're acting like a ten year old, trying to punish me for not getting her way. And I can assure you Miss Swan; you're most certainly going to clean it all up." The blonde sends her a scowl. "I'm willing to forego your complete and utter disrespect for me by vandalizing my kitchen and making yourself at home just this once, but you better start acting according to your age and not that of our son."

Emma feels her cheek starting to heat from being scolded and she gives the other woman a sour look before picking up the bowl and digging into the mixture with gusto, taking great pleasure in the huff and exasperated eye roll from the brunette.

When Regina moves to refill her glass – intentionally not offering the sheriff one it seems – the blonde stops eating. The mixture is honestly making her a little nauseous and she only ate it to spite the other woman, so she sets the bowl down and waits for the former mayor to take her seat again.

For long minutes, they just sit staring at each other, seizing the other up and waiting to see who will break first.

"You shouldn't have done what you did," Emma states when she can't take the silence any longer, yet refusing to avert her eyes. She might be the first one to give in, but that doesn't mean she will admit defeat.

The brunette releases a sigh and lets her eyes move casually away from the intense ones staring back at her as she takes a sip of her cider, and the sheriff does an internal victory dance. "You're probably right, but I wasn't thinking quite clearly," the woman explains calmly and Emma is pretty sure that's mayor code for 'I was panicking.'

"Why?"

Regina purses her lips and furrows her brows as she contemplates what she should say and how honest she should be. The blonde silently begs to herself that the progress they've been making since she got back from the Enchanted Forest isn't about to disappear.

"Because I was happy."

It's stated plainly, but it's clear from the not quite stoic face of the woman that the words have some sort of profound meaning, and the sheriff scrunches her face in confusion and growing annoyance. The brunette is always so cryptic and Emma has never been good at solving riddles and the words make no sense to her.

"I don't understand, explain it to me," the blonde demands and Regina shoots her a look of disdain as she sets her glass down and crosses her arms defensively at the other woman's rudeness. "Please," she adds quickly, softening her voice before the former mayor can scold her again for her bad manners. Being aggressive isn't going to make the woman open up, she knows that, but how often do people suddenly appear before you and whisk you away with magic? She's allowed to be confused and skeptic for fuck's sake.

The brunette raises her brows to inform Emma that she better behave, before she uncrosses her arms and reclines a little further into the chair as she tries to let herself relax a little. She doesn't want them to fight and being tense and trying to intimidate the sheriff isn't going to help. Besides, the woman deserves an explanation. She can't expect her to understand what she doesn't know.

"When I'm happy, bad things happen."

Emma can't keep her lips from twisting in amusement at the clearly overreacting woman. "Come on, everybody thinks that."

Regina narrows her eyes warningly, her hands unconsciously gripping the arms of her chair tighter. "When I'm happy…people die. _Literally_."

The blonde frowns. She's heard many things from people who are scared that something will go wrong when they're starting a relationship, but this one is new. And the former mayor stated it so gravely too, like she's really serious about it.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," the brunette starts as she leans forward to make sure she has the other woman's full attention as well as to let her know how earnest she is being. "That everyone I've ever cared about have been taken from me."

"I'm sure it's just coincidence," Emma replies with a quirk of her lips and the former Queen huffs as she falls back in her seat. It's clear the sheriff isn't taking this as seriously as she should. Elaboration needed then, she thinks with a sigh, not particularly keen on letting the woman in on something she could use against her later.

"My mother killed Daniel because I loved him. I had to sacrifice my father to enact a curse I thought would give me everything I wanted. Henry doesn't want anything to do with me unless you're with us because I'm 'the Evil Queen'. Excuse me for wishing to keep you out of harm's way."

The blonde watches in stunned silence as Regina once again crosses her arms in front of herself, clearly uncomfortable with what she's just revealed, but trying to appear indifferent. What does she say to something like that?

"I…uh…okay-" Emma mumbles, feeling awkward and wishing she knew what the right thing to say or do is.

"The point is," the brunette states, fixing the other woman with an intense look, "that until we know the town is safe, I think it would be best for you to stay somewhere that's protected against magic."

Emma frowns at the idea. She rather likes being able to come and go, not having to adapt to others and be allowed to seek refuge in her own company. "Are we sure that's really necessary? If Cora wants the dagger, I'm sure she won't bother me."

The former mayor bites her lip and looks away for a moment and the blonde knows whatever is coming can't be good.

"My mother…She knows. About us."

"What? How?" the sheriff exclaims, eyes wide, and she rises from her seat quickly and starts pacing. She thought they had been so careful.

"I don't know. Clearly, she's keeping tabs on everything that's going on and she's always had an unfortunate knack for knowing what's going on with me," Regina rushes out, hoping her suggestions will keep the other woman from accusing her of something. It's an irrational fear perhaps, but she's used to being blamed for the things people don't like and old habits die hard and all that.

"The point is," the brunette continues a little more cautiously when Emma just keeps pacing, face drawn into a frown, "that she might use you to get to me. So we need to make sure you're safe."

The sheriff stops pacing at the vulnerability she hears in the other woman's voice and for the first time since she got up, she looks over at her. A pang of guilt hits her at the look of uncertainty and what has to be apprehension on Regina's face. It's clear she expects the blonde to blame her for this, to throw a fit, to do _something_ towards her, and it saddens Emma that it's probably what the woman is used to. Well, that has to stop.

"You're right," she says as she starts moving around the table towards the other woman, and the former Queen's surprise at the words are bright as day in the way her eyes widen slightly and the way she blinks twice as if she's not sure she heard correctly.

"Let's just take a deep breath and try to calm down so we can think about this level headed," Emma supplies as she reaches out for the brunette, dismayed when the woman doesn't take it, but stands primly on her own.

"So you're staying then?" Regina asks as she straightens out her pajamas and the sheriff is unable to fight the chuckle she releases as she realizes the former mayor has been in her sleeping wear this whole time. The brunette shoots her a withering look that says she's well aware of what the other woman is finding so amusing and daring her to say something about it.

"I guess I am," the blonde replies with a shrug, amazed that she could be so out of it to not enjoy the sight of the usually posed woman in something as simple as a pajamas.

"Good. The guest room you used yesterday is still available and ready," the former mayor tells her before she starts walking towards the hallway. She stops when she reaches the doorway and turns to grin widely at the sheriff, her eyes twinkling with wicked amusement. "Oh and Miss Swan? I expect my kitchen to be impeccable when I wake up tomorrow."

Regina barely keeps her laughter from escaping at the scowl she receives.


	20. Chapter 20

AN: The part in italics are rated M I think, so if description of two women is not for you (then why are you reading SwanQueen?!) or if you're not old enough, please skip that part. Hmm, I wonder if they both dreamt the same thing? :P Reviews to know I'm doing okay would be good :)

* * *

An hour later, Emma finally drops down in the bed that's entirely too comfortable to be allowed to be called a guest bed, after cleaning both the kitchen and herself. She stares up at the ceiling in the darkness as she allows her mind to replay everything since Regina abducted her from her room at Granny's.

She does a double take when she remembers the woman scolding her for her less than adult behavior. Oh wow, Regina referred to Henry as _theirs_ not just hers. Holy cow, the former Mayor actually said _our _son and not my son. That's certainly a first.

Emma grins wide up at the ceiling, certain that it's their growing closeness that has made the brunette more open to the idea of sharing Henry, even if the woman will probably deny it if pointed out. And damn if it doesn't make her feel almost happy to think about the three of them together. It's definitely something she could get used to.

She wouldn't mind seeing more of the woman in something other than her enticing dresses or power suits either. Not that there's anything wrong with them because damn, that woman sure knows how to make herself look good. But she can't help think that Regina will look utterly cute and adorable in a more casual ensemble.

The sheriff has to force herself to not release a giggle as the vision of a clearly distraught former Mayor in PJ's swim before her eyes. She turns and snuggles into one of the soft pillows, smiling as she closes her eyes and tries to force herself to sleep.

* * *

Regina scolds the woman staring back at her in the mirror. Of all the irrational things she's done in her time, abducting Emma Swan in her pajamas is pretty far up there when it concerns losing face. She should have learned by now that letting emotions dictate what you do only ever lead to bad things. Especially for her. But that damn blonde has a way of getting under her skin, making everything she knows fly out the window; much like her son has always done.

It's been a long time since anyone has made her worry flare other than Henry, been too long if she's quite honest, since she's felt concern for anyone other than her precious boy. And it's terrifying. Being scared – of her mother, for her son, for Emma – is tiring and it's making her feel ungrounded. There's all these _feelings_ swirling around in her stomach and chest and it's most unsettling.

Determination crosses Regina's features as she makes up her mind and walks briskly to her bed. If the sheriff so much as breathes a word to her in the morning about the magic kidnapping in her pajamas she's going to end the woman. And she's going to have to make it perfectly clear that it's something the blonde should keep tightly under wraps from anyone else, unless she wants there to be dire consequences.

* * *

_She wakes to something tickling her face and she swats at whatever it is with a grumble, refusing to open her eyes. They're forced open anyway as a throaty chuckle comes from somewhere to her right before moist lips press against her neck. Blonde hair trickle her throat as a patch of skin is sucked between those lips and the air in her lungs is released on an exhalation of breath._

_A hand traces her side from hip to the outline of a breast and her body strains towards the touch unconsciously, begging for more._

_Lips smile against her skin as it's released before teeth nip playfully towards her mouth as the hand slides across satin to cup her breast with determination and if she weren't feeling so damn good she might have let herself feel embarrassed at the way her nipples strain against the soft fabric, screaming for attention._

"_Emma," she whispers throatily as the hand begins to massage and the mouth finally closes over her own. She releases a whine of disagreement when the mouth disappears, only for it to turn into a moan as wet warmth closes over her covered nipple._

_Her hands move automatically to tangle in blonde tresses, trying to press the woman closer, afraid she might stop. She doesn't, tongue flicking across the nub between sucks._

_A hand moves down to the edge of her pajama top, bunching up the fabric to get a firm hold and lips pull away from their previous task so Emma can survey the now wet patch of fabric covering her breast._

_Before she can admonish the woman for stopping, her top is lifted upwards to reveal the warm skin of her stomach and the blonde bends down to latch onto it. Kisses and nips are bestowed upon her as the woman carefully starts to unbutton the purple pajama top, working her way unhurriedly upwards to where she really wants Emma to focus, and her breathing becomes ever more ragged the closer the blonde gets._

_Her chest is rising and falling quickly between heavy breaths, her stomach fluttering with growing excitement and anticipation as the last two buttons are finally popped and the soft material parted. She can't deny the throbbing between her thighs at the way Emma soaks in the look of perked breasts with dark nipples straining towards her, the hungry look in her eyes as they turn a darker, clearer shade of green in arousal._

_The woman is taking too long, she thinks to herself, ready to open her mouth and voice her complaint before she suddenly remembers that her hands are still tangled in blonde tresses and she doesn't need words. _

_She tries to tug the woman closer and Emma smirks, resisting briefly before she lets her lower the blonde's head to where she wants her. A moan escapes her lips unbidden as lips finally wrap around her nipple without any obstructions and her nails scrape along Emma's scalp in appreciation as the woman's warm mouth sends pleasurable shivers down her spine._

_Emma continues the sweet torture against her nub as one hand moves teasingly down her heated skin; tracing the outline of her ribs, dipping into her bellybutton, caressing the swell of her hip. Then fingers find the edge of her satin bottoms and the blonde breaks away to stare at her with piercing eyes before lips curl into a smile revealing even, white teeth, as fingers dip below the waistline. Emma surges forward to fuse their mouths together as her fingers begin their exploration, swallowing the wanton moan she releases as nimble fingers find her slick heat._

* * *

When Emma wakes it's still dark outside – autumn has really set in now and the days are getting increasingly darker - and she wonders why she awoke since she's usually a somewhat late riser. But then she hears a clank and a muffled laugh and she knows why. She dresses as quickly as possible, annoyance over last night hitting her for a moment when she realizes she's gonna have to go out in her more dressed up state than usual since Regina whisked her away before she could change and knowing if she meets anyone they're going to question it and make her feel awkward, before she tosses the thoughts and feelings aside and makes her way silently down the winding staircase.

When she sticks her head inside the kitchen opening, she's greeted by the sight of Henry trying to successfully turn what looks like an omelet without ruining it, while his brunette mom is trying to distract him so he fails. The boy is squirming away from his mother's fingers and stifling giggles, while Regina tries rather badly to keep her silly smile at bay. The picture being painted in front of her makes Emma's stomach heat and flutter pleasantly, her face adopting a happy grin.

"Hey," she calls softly, announcing her presence, watching with mixed emotions as two heads turn quickly to gaze at her; Henry grinning widely at her while the brunette immediately dispatches the smile she's been wearing, her posture straightening from the relaxed state it had been in. The blonde forces her grin to remain in place, even as the woman's reaction to her appearance makes her stomach drop. She really hopes that one day soon, Regina will be comfortable enough and trust her enough to not put on her armor when she's near. The woman needs to learn that she's allowed to be happy without people wishing to take it from her or resenting her for it.

"Something smells delicious," the sheriff states as she walks closer and ruffles their son's hair as she peers into the pan.

"I'm making us omelet," Henry answers proudly, before turning his attention back to his task.

Emma looks over the kid's head and finds deep brown pools staring back at her, the brunette's face carefully masked and contemplative. Regina watches the twinkle in the blonde's eyes curiously before the gaze becomes too intense, too intimate, and she turns her attention to her son, pretending to make sure nothing gets burned.

As they walk towards the table after Henry announces that the omelet is ready, the sheriff casually lets her hand graze the other woman's lower back and for a moment Regina goes stiff and her head whips to the side to glare at the blonde. Emma just smiles wide, deliberately ignoring the silent warning, and traces her fingertips along the edge of the former Mayor's blazer before breaking away and sitting down in the seat next to Henry.

The brunette's gaze follows the other woman long after she's sat down, herself still frozen to her spot as a myriad of emotions flit around her stomach. She wishes she knew what exactly the sheriff is playing at.

"Mom?" Henry's confused voice breaks Regina out of her contemplation and she quickly walks over to her chair and sits down, pointedly ignoring the blonde woman looking all too smugly at her.

"I'm fine, let's eat shall we? I'm sure Miss Swan will be delighted to know that unlike her, you can actually make real food _without_ threatening to destroy a kitchen."

The barb is delivered with a smile, but the boy still looks unsure how to respond until he glances over at his birth mother and sees her sticking out her tongue at the brunette. Then he glances back at his other mom and watches the way her nose twitches slightly in amusement and he knows for certain that it was a joke and that they won't start arguing so he lets his laughter bubble free like his body's original reaction had been.

Emma sends him a look of mock offence before splitting the omelet in three and depositing one for each of them - the former Mayor glaring at her for doing so, but for once choosing to keep quiet - and Henry munches happily away at his food, enjoying the praise he receives from both his moms for the food and enjoying how the two women are acting civilized.

* * *

"This is nice," Henry tells the sheriff as they walk together to his school.

"Hmm?" Emma asks distractedly, glancing down at him before going back to surveying the scenery for anything suspicious.

He liked how the blonde and Regina were sort of co-parenting him this morning, getting him ready, getting his lunch ready, the brunette sending him off with the sheriff with a kiss to his head and an affectionate pat on the cheek, like everything was normal and as it should be.

"You and mom, working together, like real parents. It's nice."

Emma stops abruptly, her attention shifting fully on the boy as she looks at him with a mixture of shock and worry and hope. "Look kid, we're not exactly the Brady Bunch, so don't go getting any ideas into that smart head of yours okay?"

"Relax Emma. I'm just saying that it's nice to not have you two fighting over me all the time. I think mom is happier with you as her friend."

The blonde shuffles her feet awkwardly as she glances around uncomfortably. "Right, friends," she agrees, chewing on her lip and jutting her hands inside her jeans pockets.

Henry eyes her with a frown. "Don't you want to be her friend?"

"Of course I do kid; your mom is great when she's not trying to wreak havoc on everyone." She winces at her chosen words and how she knows her son is gonna interpret them wrongly. She's not supposed to add fuel to the idea that Regina is bad, because when it comes to their son, she's not.

"I know she's the Evil Queen, but if she has me and you then maybe she doesn't have to be," Henry says with a hopeful smile and Emma sighs, knowing she stepped in the salad and have to discourage this before the former Mayor can get wind of it.

"Henry, you really have to stop calling her that."

"But it's who she is," he responds, brows furrowing in confusion at the sudden shift in his birth mom.

"No it's not. Maybe in another lifetime, in another world, but here she's just Regina; Mayor and mom okay?"

The boy looks up at her petulantly. Even though he's not yet eleven, he knows there are flaws in what his birth mom is saying. "But she tried to make you leave; she had everyone under a curse," he argues, watching Emma scowl at his words.

"Okay, yes, she did, but has she not been good since the curse broke?" she shoots back and Henry looks down as he shuffles his feet and thinks the question through. Has his mom done anything really bad lately? Not that he knows off, but then he hardly knows everything that's going on, even if he wishes to.

"I guess," he answers slowly, doubt marring his young features and the blonde pounces on the opening.

"She doesn't want to hurt anyone anymore kid."

"How can you be sure? Maybe she's just playing us?" Henry watches in confusion as something a lot like anger and – was that hurt? - flickers across the sheriff's face.

"We have to give her a chance Henry, to let her prove that she's changing. She raised you for ten years and you've turned out okay. Evil wouldn't do that. Has she ever been _really_ bad to you?"

"She tried to make me think I was crazy for believing the curse was real," he counters quickly, crossing his small arms and giving her a pointed look, knowing that it can't be denied by the other woman, something that's clear in the sway she flinches slightly at the reminder.

"Well no one is perfect," Emma replies with a frown. Honestly, she would have sent him to a shrink too because not more than a year ago she was convinced it couldn't be real. "But other than that?" she presses, hoping there isn't some big thing she doesn't know about.

Henry frowns as he tries to think of something else before he releases a defeated sigh. "I guess not."

The blonde smiles. "That's because she's not Evil, she's your mom." Like it's that easy. The boy narrows his eyes suspiciously up at her.

"Why are you defending her anyway? You're the Savior. Aren't you, like, her sworn enemy or something?"

Emma huffs. God she hates being called that. Most of the time she has enough work laid out for her just getting through the day. She's not some freaking saint like everyone seems to think. She's done her own share of bad things, has her own issues.

"If I really am a savior, shouldn't I be trying to save everyone?" Emma frowns at the way her son's whole face lights up and she just knows whatever he's thought of can't be good.

"So it's like a secret mission? The Savior saves the Evil Queen!"

The sheriff groans. She really shouldn't encourage him with things like this, but how else is she supposed to make him understand? He's just a child. "Sure kid. But that means she needs us to believe in her and that means no more name calling; no Evil Queen, okay?"

Henry nods his head vigorously as they begin walking again.

* * *

Emma Swan releases a breath of relief as she closes the door to Granny's inn. She's not going to deny that she has sort of been sneaking around as she made her way from the school to the diner, trying to avoid anyone she knows before she could get changed into more appropriate clothes, knowing the questions she'd get if she bumped into anyone.

Behind her someone whistles and the blonde jumps and spins around quickly to see who it is her heart doing a quick jump in her chest as she's caught off guard, having thought she was in the clear. She releases a puff of air and tries to act like she wasn't just startled as she pushes a strand of her hair back from her face and smiles at Ruby.

"Damn, who are you meeting?" the waitress asks as she gives the sheriff a once over, grinning in playful appreciation of what she sees. Emma rolls her eyes at her friend's behavior.

"No one, I was just on my way to change." Ruby's grin grows even wider, her eyes gleaming with mischief.

"So you met someone and stayed up all night then," she states, prompting another eye roll from the blonde.

"Get your mind out of the gutter," she admonishes as she purposefully starts making her way to the stairs.

"Fine. Be a spoil sport then," the waitress says dramatically, her bottom lip protruding in the most over exaggerated pout Emma has ever seen.

"I will," the sheriff confirms with a grin before she disappears.

Once she's safe in her room, she releases a heavy breath and leans against the door before she shakes her head and throws off her clothes. A quick shower and then she'll go to the sheriff's station and pretend to do something sensible on the off chance something might actually happen in the town that requires her to do her job.


	21. Chapter 21

AN: If you're all lucky, updates might come a little faster nowadays since I have two weeks off from everything ;) I never plan for there to be so much time between updates at times, but alas, real life does have an annoying habit of getting in the way.

* * *

It is official. At some point soon she's going to have to start trying to come to terms with the fact she really likes Emma Swan. Especially on account of these dreams she keeps having that seems content to escalate and keep appearing.

Regina sighs as she takes a sip of the coffee she's nursing in the kitchen, having cleaned up after breakfast earlier and now finding herself with little to do to pass the time until the sheriff returns, but contemplate their…relationship.

Quite frankly, just admitting to herself in the solitude of her mind that there is indeed _something_ between them, is terrifying. But she can't deny that there's chemistry between them. Or that she wasn't happy when the blonde was off in New York. And not just because it made Henry miserable and made him go back to the rudeness she had gotten so used to after the curse broke – something that really irks her by the way, that it's come so far that her son needs his birth mother present just as much as he used to need her. She's really trying to come to terms with having to share him, even if her jealousy and possessiveness does shine through every once in a while.

No, it would be easy to say it was just for Henry, but it would be a lie. She had missed Emma's presence, her scowls, the princess curls, her hideous red leather jacket that she secretly kind of liked and that death trap she called a car. But most of all she had missed their interactions and what she has come to think of as playful banter.

Sure, to most it seems like they can't stand each other and are constantly throwing scathing remarks to try and hurt the other. But somewhere during all the chaos of the savior riding into town, trying to take her son, and breaking the curse, their encounters stopped being about scorn and hate. Instead their remarks started turning into suggestive jabs that made her feel alive again. And that is the simple and scary truth. Emma Swan makes her feel alive.

She can barely remember the last time she allowed herself to rely on and trust someone other than herself, and it frightens her how much she craves the blonde's company; how she makes her feel _happy_. It feels good to be near the sheriff, to tease her, to kiss her, to just spend time with her like on their 'date' yesterday. And that's part of the problem isn't it? When has anything that has made her feel like that ever ended positively?

She knows she's being a coward, something she's always loathed in others. But who can blame her after all the heartbreak and sorrow she has experienced? Still, she can't deny that she craves it, longs for it, like a man wishing for water in the desert.

The only thing she knows for sure right now is that if this thing between Emma and herself is ever going to stand a chance at surviving and evolving, she can't just sit around and wait for something that can defeat her mother. She can't put her faith in Snow White again. She's going to have to search for alternatives herself.

And why the hell isn't Emma Swan back yet?

* * *

Emma perks quickly in her chair as the telltale clicking of heels enter the station and she fumbles with some forms on her desk, trying to appear busy and not like she was half asleep only seconds ago daydreaming about a certain former Mayor and the dream she had the night before. It felt so real and even though she knows they're not at a stage to do things like _that_ she's still allowed to fantasize about the time they will be, right?

When the former Mayor rounds the corner and comes into view, she glances up briefly before going back to her 'work' with the papers. She frowns at what she saw during her look, knowing from the woman's stony face and brisk walking that she's not pleased with something. And so she deliberately keeps from looking up, trying to prolong what she's sure will be an uncomfortable encounter.

Regina clears her throat in annoyance when it becomes clear that the blonde is avoiding acknowledging her on purpose and she watches with growing agitation as the woman slowly puts down her pen and leans back in her seat casually. How dare that, that _girl_ ignore her. She is not some peasant like most of the rest of town.

"What can I do for you Regina?" Emma questions, her tone neutral, or at least as much as it can be when she knows the brunette is about to agitate her like she seems to be so good at. Not that the ability doesn't seem mutual.

For a moment, the former Mayor's eyes flash dangerously and she braces herself for a tirade. But then the woman seems to change her mind and her stance softens ever so slightly as her brows furrow and her mouth falls into a pout that shouldn't look quite as adorable to her as it does.

"Why didn't you come back?"

Wait, she's pissed because of that? She was only trying to be nice and give her some space. "Oh, I just assumed-"

"With you that's never a good thing," Regina cuts off, raising her brow in challenge as the sheriff opens her mouth to retort. The blonde closes her mouth with a grumble, crossing her arms and scowling at the woman who smirk pleased back at her.

Right. An offended Regina is a mean Regina. For a moment there she forgot that little tidbit. "What do you want?"

The brunette inhales and glances around casually, like she's bored and is seriously considering not telling on account of Emma's lack of manners when addressing her, and the blonde releases a low growl of impatience. "Regina," she warns, voice low and eyes blazing with annoyance.

"Oh, fine," the former Mayor replies with a sigh as she primly takes a seat, crossing one leg over the other, making her skirt slide a little further up to reveal just that little bit more skin. She smirks when the other woman's eyes quickly glances down before focusing back on her face, the blonde releasing a huff at how she's being deliberately infuriating. "I just thought you'd be interested in taking a little trip with me down to Rumpelstiltskin's shop to see if we find anything interesting."

"Why?" Emma asks skeptically, not a big fan of the gleaming white teeth and politician smile the other woman adapts. Nothing good has ever come from that particular look.

"Well, we can't wait around forever for your dear mother Snow to persuade Rumpel to give up the location of his dagger. We should look for something alternative; a back-up plan if you will."

"Are you sure that's all you want?" the sheriff asks with a frown, noting the silky smoothness of the other woman's voice, something she's come to think of as a hint that something isn't as it seems.

Regina drops her smile immediately, her brows furrowing in displeasure as her voice grows harder. "All I want is to make sure we get rid of my mother so Henry is safe. I wasn't aware that was a bad thing."

The blonde raises her hands in surrender. "Of course not, it's just, you had that look and that voice and it usually comes with ulterior motives," she tries to deflect, groaning silently at the way the other woman's eyes narrow dangerously at her. God, can she just one time manage to not rile up the former Mayor?

"I'm sorry dear, I wasn't aware," the brunette lies smoothly, both women knowing that's far from the truth. If there's one thing Regina is good at, it's manipulating others and getting her way. Emma chooses, perhaps wisely, to keep quiet. She's just going to have to pay extra close attention to what the other woman is up to.

* * *

"So what exactly is it we're searching for?" Emma questions as she look around at the endless trinkets and objects in Mr. Gold's shop.

She's purposefully choosing to avoid the topic of how the other woman used magic to get inside, knowing it will most likely only end in an argument over her promise to their son of not using magic and how it's more or less needed now that Cora is here.

A part of her is worried that Regina might be using it more often than she lets on and that the power might tempt her back to someone she used to be in the past. But the other part knows that she's stronger than that and that her need to prove herself to and regain her son is more important than magic. The woman is, luckily, not like her mother in that aspect.

"I'm not sure, I need to look around and see if – that sneaky bastard," the brunette exclaims angrily, making Emma jump and watch confused as she strides over to something large covered by a blanket that the blonde knows weren't there the last time she was here.

"What is it?" she asks curiously as she hurries over, only to inhale a large amount of dust as the other woman tears the blanket away, leaving her in a fit of coughs. She splutters for a few moments before she looks up and sees the frame of what is supposed to be a large mirror, the glass it encased obviously broken a long time ago.

"It's a portal."

"A what now?" Emma retorts immediately, doing a double take at what she knows shouldn't be possible except she keeps forgetting that magic is something real in Storybrooke now, not just something to be read in books, and watching Regina huff in annoyance at having to explain something so simple.

"Before it broke it was a window between two realms. It's how I got rid of my mother the first time."

She perks up at the woman's explanation. "Awesome! So then we fix it and we can get rid of her again."

Regina shoots her a thoroughly unimpressed look at that. "Do you really think it's that easy to make it work again? And even if it was, it would be foolish to think Cora will fall for the same thing twice." After all, she didn't. That's the problems when villains aren't all black. They learn from their mistakes, they evolve, making it that much harder to get rid of them again.

The blonde sags in defeat at being shot down so efficiently and so quickly. "But we could at least try right?" she offers sheepishly, but the former Mayor simply purses her lips and moves away from the mirror frame to search for anything else that can be of significance. Emma tries her best to keep an eye on the other woman and feign interest in the things around her, but every so often her gaze keeps wandering back to the broken mirror.

Eventually the brunette releases a sigh as she moves to stand in front of the empty frame once more, and she doesn't need to speak for the blonde to know that she found nothing else of relevance.

She watches intrigued as Regina gingerly moves her hand to the frame, stroking it almost reverently, like a child would an old toy being rediscovered after many years. She doesn't know why or how, but _something_ is drawing her towards the broken mirror, tempting her, silently whispering for her to stand next to the other woman. Slowly, Emma moves her hand to mirror that of the brunette's on the other side of the frame.

The former Mayor's head snaps to the side to look at her in confusion, but before she can so much as open her mouth to ask what the other woman is doing, they both shudder and release a gasp.

The feeling she's currently experiencing is not something Emma has ever felt before. The best description she can think of is like something is being sucked right out of her. But where she expects pain there is none. Just the growing sense of…tiredness. She tries to pull her hand away, but finds herself unable to, like something invisible has taken hold of her and refuses to release her.

Suddenly terrified, she looks over to the other woman, hoping to find reassurance, but finding only brown pools mirroring her own fear. She opens her mouth to speak, to scream, to do something, anything, but before she can do any of those things a flash of blinding light bursts forth from the broken mirror. Emma closes her eyes automatically to protect her retina as she is propelled backwards by an invisible force. Her back hits something sharp and she cries out as pain shoots straight up her spine before her head impacts with something solid.

For a long moment everything is black and the sheriff has half a mind to wonder if she's lost consciousness, before she realizes she wouldn't feel like she might throw up if she did. Somewhere far off, her name is being called and she blinks rapidly, trying to make the black dots that fill her vision disappear. It takes a few seconds and a lot of concentration, but slowly she's able to focus on the worried face of Regina Mills bending over her.

She tries to move and releases a groan as jolts of pain shoot up her back once more. "What the hell just happened?" she demands groggily, watching the brunette release a relieved breath that she appears to be more or less okay.

"It was…Magic," the former Mayor breathes, voice filled with awe and confusion, and Emma turns her head just slightly so she can look behind the woman. And she sees it then, what Regina is talking about. Where there was previously just an empty frame, there's now unmarred glass.

"Did we fix it?" she asks, feeling stupid once the words leave her mouth because of course they did. Why else would she be flung backwards by something intangible and feel so drained, and a non-broken mirror standing before them?

The brunette simply laughs and reaches her hand down for the other woman to take, which she does with gratitude, leaning heavily on the counter she was apparently just thrown against.

"I feel so…exhausted."

"Magic does that when one is as inexperienced as you," Regina snarks, but there's no hiding the wonder on her face at what just transpired.

The blonde winces as she stands, knowing she's gonna get a hell of a bruise on her back. And then her legs threaten to give out completely as an arm encircles her waist and pulls her tightly and securely against the former Mayor in support. Maybe she needs to get hurt more often.


End file.
